Last Updated on Wednesday, 03 October 2012 14:56
About the Cooperative Wildlife Management Unit (CWMU) program
The Cooperative Wildlife Management Unit (CWMU) program has opened more than two million acres of private land to the public. The program provides an abundance of benefits to the state's economy and its wildlife.
Landowners have incentive to keep their private range and forest lands as wildlife habitat instead of developing them, while sportsmen have more opportunities to take an animal, with fewer hunters to compete with.
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If you're a Utah resident, there are two ways to obtain a CWMU permit:
CWMU landowner association members and operators—and their spouses and dependent children—cannot apply for CWMU permits in the public drawing.
If you're not a resident of Utah, you cannot apply for a CWMU permit in the public drawing. You can, however, obtain a permit voucher directly from the CWMU landowner or operator.
If you obtain a CWMU voucher, you can redeem it for a permit by mailing the voucher to:
CWMU Front Desk Division of Wildlife Resources P.O. Box 146301 Salt Lake City, Utah 84114-6301 (Please allow 10 to 14 days for processing.)
You can also redeem the voucher at any Division office.
If you obtain a CWMU permit, you may hunt only on the CWMU specified on your permit. You may take only one animal of the species and sex listed on the permit. You'll also incur a waiting period for the species you obtained a permit for. You may not obtain more than one pronghorn, one moose, one buck deer or one bull elk permit in a year. But you can obtain an antlerless deer or antlerless elk permit.
If you draw a permit to hunt a CWMU, you must contact the CWMU operator to obtain the following:
If you obtain a CWMU permit, you must report information about your hunt within 30 days after it ends.
This information is required even if you didn't harvest an animal. If you harvested an animal, this is an ideal time to return your tooth packet. Returning your tooth packet does not fulfill the harvest survey requirement. You can report information about your hunt online or by calling 1-800-221-0659.
If you wish to lodge a complaint against a CWMU, you should contact the Division of Wildlife Resources immediately. Biologists and conservation officers can supply you with a complaint form, or you can make the complaint in person or over the telephone. You and the operator should make every effort to resolve your issues before they escalate to the Division level. If your problem cannot be resolved locally, it may be passed on to a CWMU Advisory Committee for review and possible action.
CWMU trade lands are available to the public:
Utah's Walk-In Access program gives hunters, anglers and trappers unprecedented access to private property across the state. For more information on Utah's Walk-In Access program—and to find the best big game hunting properties near you—visit wildlife.utah.gov/walkinaccess
Landowners that have an interest in this program must have a minimum of 5,000 contiguous acres to manage a deer, pronghorn or turkey and a minimum of 10,000 contiguous acres for elk or moose.
Numerous landowners may join together to form a single CWMU which must consist of private lands.
A management plan must be written by the CWMU with the help of an area biologist; the management plan acts as a contract between the landowner and the DWR.
Permit numbers are jointly determined by the CWMU and the DWR biologists and are split between the CWMU (private) and the public.
Public hunters must have hunting opportunity that is comparable to the private hunters. This is a cornerstone of the CWMU program.
Landowners can obtain specific information from R657-37 which is the rule that governs the CWMU program from any Division office.
