by Kirk Siegler, All Things Considered
Rocky Mountain National Park officials
some controversy when they culled the park's elk population
month. What they didn't
was thousands of people signing
for free meat.
After executing a long-planned shoot to control the
elk population, park officials
a lottery to distribute the meat. They thought a couple hundred people
respond.
, there were 5,247 applicants and the lottery was closed after just a few days.
"I was
," says Larry Rogstad of the Colorado Division of Wildlife. He was surprised because the lottery was
advertised. But Rogstad says hunters do talk a lot, and the park's plan to
elk was highly publicized. And then there's the meat.
"There are a lot of people out there who
like elk meat," hunter Mike Mangelsen says. "Elk meat is high-quality meat, very
."
That's one of the reasons Mangelsen
up for the lottery. He loves elk meat.
"You know I had steak
dinner last night, elk steak," he says as he finishes up lunch —
elk burrito. Though he didn't win any of the 11 elk that have been distributed
, he says he's not disappointed. He's happy the meat is
used "rather than just throwing them
the edge of a cliff, or into a landfill." Especially now, he says, when so many people are struggling to make ends
.
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