PGC DEER MANAGEMENT FORUM THURS
PCN will provide live TV coverage

Officials from the Pa. Game Commission (PGC) will answer questions from local people about the future of hunting in Pennsylvania's northern counties during a town meeting in Coudersport on Thursday. The 7 p.m. session will be carried live on television, on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.

A PGC deer biologist will be among panelists discussing "The Future Of Hunting In Pennsylvania's Big Woods." Also on the panel are a research forester from the U.S. Forest Service and Jack Krafft, owner of First Fork Lodge in Costello.

Citizens will be encouraged to share their views about issues affecting the hunting industry in Pennsylvania.

The town meeting will be held at the Coudersport High School auditorium. At 6 p.m. there will be a presentation, "Open Records in Pennsylvania: Getting Public Information from the Game Commission and other State Agencies," by Teri Henning, general counsel for the Pa. Newspaper Assn.

Thursday's session is sponsored by that organization, as well the Pa. Cable Network and the Potter Leader-Enterprise.

"This is a rare opportunity," said Leader-Enterprise managing editor Donald Gilliland. "It's not often we get the chance to address Game Commission officials directly."

Gilliland said some people applaud the PGC for deer management policies that have produced larger antlers on bucks and reduced damage to farm crops and regenerating forests. Others see negative impacts, such as fewer deer overall and economic losses from decreased tourism, he added.

"This is an opportunity for all sides of the debate to be heard, and for their ideas to be considered by people who help make policy," he said.

The town meeting is free and open to all.