Matters of Opinion

In the February issue of North Dakota OUTDOORS, we published the 2020 enforcement division review. This is something we’ve been doing for years.

Included in the review was the 2020 summary of violations, which provided a snapshot of what North Dakota Game and Fish Department wardens encountered across the state.

These citation numbers – nearly 2,700 in total – tell just a fraction of the story. What they don’t mention, as Scott Winkelman, Department chief warden, accurately pointed out in the enforcement division review, are the sacrifices the men and women wardens make in their unfailing effort to safeguard North Dakota’s natural resources, while ensuring the safety of the many who recreate outdoors. The numbers say nothing about forfeited weekends and holidays, lost family time and hunting season openers spent wearing a badge instead of a game vest and their favorite hunting boots.

What’s interesting, and certainly provides more insight into the lives of Department wardens and the impact they have in the field, are the number of people simply contacted by wardens when there was no wrongdoing.

Winkelman said in the enforcement division review that, for instance, between Sept. 1, 2020 and Dec. 31, 2020, wardens made nearly 12,000 contacts – public safety calls, wildlife issues, license checks, the list goes on – compared to about 1,000 citations written during the same time period.

I’ve long touted the accomplishments of all Game and Fish Department staff. I am often impressed by the quality and quantity of work realized by our personnel, especially when you consider the size of our agency – one of smallest in terms of employee numbers in the country.

The Game and Fish Department’s enforcement division, for example, consists of just 39 full-time staff, 31 of which are on-the-ground wardens.

Roll those numbers around in your head just a bit, while also envisioning the vastness of North Dakota and the undertaking demanded to patrol a state of this size and patrol it well.

Impressive.

As I write this in late February, we’re still weeks away from fishing open waters across the state. I’m at a loss when winter will give way to spring. I also don’t know if you will, while on the water or fishing from shore, be contacted by one of our game wardens. If and when that happens, remember that these people are as passionate about safeguarding North Dakota’s great outdoors as you are.