DNR contractor loses data, waits to report it
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A contractor for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources lost a computer flash drive containing the names and Social Security numbers of more than 7,000 Iowans, then left the incident unreported for two weeks, state officials said Tuesday.
The information on the flash drive was about people who operate water and sewage treatment plants, landfills and well-drilling operations. The workers have to get state certification to do those jobs, and the records, kept by Salem Associates of Des Moines on behalf of the DNR, were related to the certifications.
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LTE
Watch the wildlife instead of killing it
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The recent incident in which a domestic cat was caught in a foothold trap is an example of how these devices are not species specific and are prone to catching domestic animals and threatened or endangered species ("Cat Owner Says It's Time to Toughen Trapping Laws," Dec. 5). Because of the danger posed by foothold traps, Conibear traps and snares, recreational fur trapping should be banned immediately.
The Department of Natural Resources caters to trappers despite the dangers inherent in recreational trapping because the department is funded in part through the sale of trapping licenses. Instead of supporting programs designed to bring suffering upon native wildlife, the DNR could enhance wildlife-watching programs, a pastime whose participants outnumber those of hunters and trappers by almost four to one. Wildlife watchers also outspend hunters and trappers through their expenditures on food, lodging, cameras, binoculars and other equipment, thereby generating more support for the local economy.
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On behalf of our members and supporters throughout Iowa, we urge the DNR to abandon its Stone Age recreational-trapping seasons and, in its place, nurture the potential in wildlife-watching programs. These programs can create a shift in the paradigm toward the protection, respect and admiration for wildlife and their habitat without having to risk the lives of domestic animals.
- Joe Miele,
vice president, Wildlife Watch Inc.
New Paltz, N.Y.
The Department of Natural Resources caters to trappers despite the dangers inherent in recreational trapping because the department is funded in part through the sale of trapping licenses. Instead of supporting programs designed to bring suffering upon native wildlife, the DNR could enhance wildlife-watching programs, a pastime whose participants outnumber those of hunters and trappers by almost four to one. Wildlife watchers also outspend hunters and trappers through their expenditures on food, lodging, cameras, binoculars and other equipment, thereby generating more support for the local economy.
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On behalf of our members and supporters throughout Iowa, we urge the DNR to abandon its Stone Age recreational-trapping seasons and, in its place, nurture the potential in wildlife-watching programs. These programs can create a shift in the paradigm toward the protection, respect and admiration for wildlife and their habitat without having to risk the lives of domestic animals.
- Joe Miele,
vice president, Wildlife Watch Inc.
New Paltz, N.Y.