OLA – Petit Jean River WMA will be closed temporarily to daytime public access for short periods of time during the week of Dec. 8. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Wildlife Services, in cooperation with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, will be conducting aerial operations to facilitate feral hog control efforts. The flights will be dependent on the weather.
The WMA will only be closed to public access for one to two days to allow for the aerial flights. The plan is to fly Dec. 8-9 if enough hogs are being found to warrant a second day.
Access will not be allowed during ongoing operations to provide public safety. Varying weather and site-specific conditions will not allow for specific closure dates. The closure dates allow some flexibility to take advantage of resources over large contiguous tracts of habitat. In the event that access to the WMA is restricted, AGFC and partnering agency staff will be on-site to maintain road and access closures…