More than a year of work. And to think Ohne Raasch volunteered for it. And Raasch wasn't the only one. He and about 100 others spent a combined total of 10,000 hours in meetings as part of Deer Management for 2000 and Beyond, a statewide effort intended to guide Wisconsin's deer future. Advocates of the project say Deer 2000 provides a solid foundation for future deer decisions.
Critics say the process was a sham created to affirm decisions already made.
Raasch, a deer hunter who lives near Lake Mills and works for a utility company, was co-chair of the group that studied the size of the deer herd. Although Deer 2000 was coordinated by the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, which is a private group that advises the Natural Resources Board, the stated intent was to gather input from everybody who has an interest in deer. The herd size group shook out to 12 people, three of whom were Conservation Congress members. On the other extreme were people who wanted to keep the herd high. The core of the group was in the middle.