Commission approves limited deer hunting permits at Blockhouse Valley former landfill

The Anderson County Commission approved an amended resolution to allow limited, restricted deer hunting on county-owned Blockhouse Valley former landfill property. Hunting is restricted to deer, requires permitted hunters to comply with Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) rules, and includes a waiver and liability release condition for permit holders. Permits are issued by three-day increments via a random lottery held by the County Mayor; no Sunday hunting is allowed.

The resolution limits permits to no more than four individual three-day permits for the site and allows one additional permit for Young Sportsman-qualified hunters. Archery, crossbows, muzzle-loaded firearms and shotguns are allowable methods consistent with TWRA regulations. TWRA will monitor and enforce the restrictions, with violations reported to the Law Director or District Attorney General. The commission recorded one abstention on the motion (Commissioner Creasey).

The change reverses an earlier 2009 resolution that had prohibited hunting on the property when it was dedicated as a nature preserve, allowing controlled hunting as a deer-management tool with specific safety buffers (no hunting within 200 yards of adjacent landowners) and administrative controls.