DNR to host pair of area public meetings on Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in late August

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is hosting informational meetings on Chronic Wasting Disease in northeastern Iowa. A pair of such meetings are scheduled for Wednesday, August 24 at Johnson’s Hall and Restaurant in Elkader from 6:30-7:30 p.m. and Wednesday, August 31 at the Waukon Banquet Center from 6:30-7:30 p.m. The DNR invites everyone who is interested in learning more about what Iowans can do to help slow the spread of the disease.

Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is a fatal disease that affects members of the deer family, including white-tailed deer in Iowa. The DNR began statewide surveillance efforts for the disease in 2002 when CWD was detected in wild deer in some of Iowa’s neighboring states. Since then, the DNR has maintained statewide surveillance efforts in order to monitor the spread of the disease in Iowa’s white-tailed deer population. Following the 2021-2022 hunting seasons, a total of 163 CWD-positive deer have been detected in 12 Iowa counties.