Bedford County officials oppose elk restoration plan

BEDFORD — Bedford County elected officials and agriculture representatives are opposing a proposal by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries to reintroduce elk into southwestern Virginia.

The county’s board of supervisors voted Thursday to approve a resolution that says it opposes a VDGIF plan that reintroduces a permanent herd of elk into three southwestern counties for hunting and tourism purposes.

The area under consideration for potential elk restoration includes Buchanan, Dickensen and Wise counties, according to VDGIF. Virginia’s native elk were hunted to extinction more than 150 years ago.

Bedford’s agricultural economic development board, an appointed group that advises supervisors in farming-related matters, stated in a written recommendation the potential action is “misguided and potentially harmful to agricultural interests.”

“The Ag board feels that the reintroduction of this species would pose a significant risk to agricultural crops, particularly orchards, to livestock by the transmission of disease and expose agricultural and residential property to damage,” the recommendation states.

An unknown number of elk are found in Virginia after they migrated to the state following their release in Kentucky in the 1990s, according to the department website. An elk hunting season was approved to keep them from becoming established in Virginia, it states.

A VDGIF committee has recommended that 200 animals at a time be reintroduced until the herd reaches 1,200 animals over 12 years. Restoring and maintaining elk populations can provide economic benefits through the hunting industry, according to the department’s website.

Though not proposed for restoration in Bedford, the agricultural board expressed concern that the animals could eventually reach farmers and landowners in the county.

“It is reasonable to expect to see the first elk in Bedford County a few years after a herd is established in southwest Virginia,” its recommendation states. “Elk destroy orchard trees by using them to rub the velvet off their large antlers ... they break branches and can debark a tree, killing it outright or making it susceptible to disease and insects.”

The supervisors’ resolution says Bedford County has previous experience with a failed attempt to reintroduce elk in the 1950s and 1960s, which resulted in the loss of hundreds of orchard trees, trampling of fields and the destruction of farm fences.

The last elk in Bedford County was killed in 1972, according to the agricultural board. Officials also expressed concern with the potential of 700-pound elk on roads, which they said could endanger human life.

Six of the seven county supervisors present at a special called meeting Thursday voted to support the resolution. Forest District Supervisor John Sharp announced he received a phone call from Supervisor Steve Arrington, who was absent, and indicated Arrington also opposes the proposal.

“I’m glad to see you bring it to us,” Chairman Roger Cheek said of the agricultural board’s recommendation to several members in attendance Thursday. “I certainly support it.”

Bedford County Administrator Kathleen Guzi said the VDGIF is taking comments on the proposal until Aug. 1.