Texans Fighting for the Right to Pump Gasoline into Snake Dens to Flush them Out
OutdoorHub Reporters 11.10.16
A Texas lawmaker recently nixed a proposal to outlaw gassing snake dens in order to capture them, and some are not happy about it.
Apparently, it’s now up for debate whether or not hunters should be allowed to use snake gassing. This method is the easiest way for hunters to drive snakes out of their dens so they can be used in the popular “rattlesnake roundup” carnival.
Those opposed to this method say it has considerable environmental consequences, which would make sense considering they’re dumping gas into the ground. Opponents also argue that it’s an “indiscriminate means to take.”
One particular reader of the Statesman, Collette Adkins, from the Center for Biological Diversity in Minnesota, blasted the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission for nixing the ban proposal, saying in a letter to the editor they “bowed to narrow interests of rattlesnake hunters.”
“It is outrageous that Commission Chairman Dan Friedman – the billionaire CEO of Gulf States Toyota Distributors – single-handedly nixed the public hearing on the citizen petition seeking the ban,” she wrote.
Many rattlesnake events currently discourage the collection of snakes by gassing, and several organizers have expressed a desire to work cooperatively with TPWD and snake collectors to promote safe and effective collection practices.
