Fight begins to limit duck hunting on Lake Norman

LAKE NORMAN, N.C.,None — Local and state leaders are looking into changing laws for hunters on Lake Norman.

Tricia Schurmeier, a Mooresville resident who lives on the lake, said that on Nov. 12, she saw two men kill a duck near her neighbor's dock around 9:30 a.m.

"This is when your children, your pets and you are outside," Schurmeier said.

Laws vary by county and town. In Iredell and Mecklenburg counties, hunters are allowed to hunt up to the private property's high-water mark.

Schurmeier said she comes from a family of hunters and has nothing against hunting. However, many people are not familiar with where the high-water marks are. She wants laws changed so that hunters cannot hunt close to homes.

Some local lawmakers agree.

Cornelius Mayor Jeff Tarte, an avid hunter himself, recently wrote a letter to local and state leaders.

Thank you for voting on wsoctv.com. Do you think duck hunting should be banned on Lake Norman? Do you think duck hunting should be banned on Lake Norman? Yes No I don't care

Tarte wants to ban hunting on or near Lake Norman in Mecklenburg County. "It is no longer safe for hunters to be firing guns where their game literally falls into folks' backyards. This is a catastrophic accident waiting to happen," he wrote.

Tarte said he has received many emails about this issue. One resident told him she was driving near the lake when a hunter accidentally shot into her car.

Duck hunters do not believe the laws should change.

Scott Williams, one of the hunters who do not support the law change, said leaders should worry about more pressing safety issues on the lake, such as drunk boating.

"We're not going to allow our rights to be jeopardized," Williams said.

An officer with the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission said in the past 20 years officers cannot remember any accidents involving duck hunting on the lake, but this summer they made 57 arrests for boating while impaired.

The big question now is if the laws were to change, who would be charged with enforcing it.

Some local lawmakers said they believe this is a state issue but the Wildlife Resources Commission said the laws usually originate at the local level.

More Information: N.C. Wildlife Commission

WSOC