A program aimed at controlling the local goose population via the capture and lethal gassing of the birds has been paused by Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources.
M. Scott Bowen, director of the state agency, announced the decision in a response letter sent to Democratic lawmakers on May 9. An earlier letter sent by Sen. Dayna Polehanki (D-Livonia) and 11 cosigners in April had previously urged the DNR to reconsider the “capture and euthanasia” program, saying it was a “disproportionate, inhumane” response to nuisance complaints, “mainly about goose droppings.”
The legislation would allow residents with the correct permits to capture “nuisance Canada geese” for euthanasia during the species’ flightless period of June 1 through July 1. Landowners seeking the permit to do so were required to have tried other non-lethal control methods first.
Addressed to the Natural Resources Committee, the appeal decried the intended solution that would “annually round up potentially 10,000 or more Canada geese and their goslings in their natural habitat during their summer molt (June and July) when they are flightless,” according to the writers.
Program would allow ‘lethally gassing’ geese in ‘portable gas chambers,’ opponents say
Referred to as the “Canada Goose Program” on the Michigan DNR website, the initiative was passed on Oct. 10, 2024, and was set to begin in 2025. According to the program’s FAQ page, it was designed to “give private landowners (including businesses and other commercial entities) options to address goose-human conflicts on their sites,” saying Canada geese are “typically responsible for most conflicts” and that concerned have increase amid the spread of disease like the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (or bird flu).
The program would allow residents to receive permits to destroy “nuisance” goose nests and eggs and would eliminate the relocation of geese after roundup, instead of requiring that any captured geese be killed. The program’s “end goal” was to allow participants to pay to have meat from the geese processed, tested and donated, but in the meantime, the corpses would go to landfills.
This “roundup of Canada geese and their goslings and lethally gassing them inside portable gas chambers,” as described by the lawmakers opposed to the program, was officially put on hold a week before the May 16 deadline for landowners to apply for the proper permits to participate.
It had previously been contested by local groups such as In Defense of Animals, which said on its website, encouraging residents to write to their representatives, “Michiganders have the power to stand up for geese and demand ethical, non-lethal management solutions in their own communities.”
State still prioritizes non-lethal animal control, says director
The letter announcing the pause said the agency had been “working with the public to resolve human-goose conflicts for over 40 years” and that the pilot program was another effort toward that goal.
“After further consideration and consultation with our Wildlife staff, we have decided to pause the program for this year and will not be issuing any permits or conducting this work on any sites,” said Bowen’s letter. “We will continue to research alternative options for managing human-goose conflicts and health and human safety concerns forareas with overabundant Canada Goose populations.”
The agency continues to prioritize non-lethal techniques, including habitat modification, elimination of feeding, scare tactics, repellents and nest/egg destruction, said the letter.
“It is important for the health and safety of our citizens and the management of our natural resources that we continue to use the goose management tools at our disposal,” it continued.
The DNR shared a copy of the May 9 letter but did not provide further comment to USA TODAY.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Plans to lethally gas Canada geese put on pause in Michigan
