Jul 14, 2016 By Luke Campbell 3 min read

In 2013, the goal stated by Mt. Lebanon commissioners was to decrease the number of deer vehicular collisions by half.

To do that, commissioners looked to neighboring communities as to how they were trying to solve their own deer-related issues.

Following in the footsteps of Upper St. Clair, last year was the first time the municipality instituted controlled archery and sharpshooting hunts. White Buffalo Inc., a nonprofit organization that specializes in providing management alternatives in non-traditional settings, used both private and public properties to control the deer population with archery and sharpshooting methods.

It was part of an effort that removed a total of 219 deer from the densely populated confines of Mt. Lebanon.

Despite the elimination of deer, vehicular crashes with the animals have risen. In the six months tallied in 2016, with the exception of March, collisions have eclipsed each monthly amount of the past three years, according to the Mt. Lebanon Police Department.

While the goal to cut the 44 accidents that occurred in 2013 by half, the police department has already reported a number that has trumped that total, with 47 deer-related accidents already occurring this year.

“We know that removing deer from the population can be effective in reducing collisions,” said municipal manager Keith McGill. “It just comes down to what program is the right balance for each community. It is a very emotional and polarizing issue. The commission is focused more on deer vehicular collisions rather than the other impacts they have on the community.”

After receiving another proposal from Tony DeNicola, president of White Buffalo Inc., the commission will decide on how to proceed for the 2016-17 deer season during their next voting meeting, Aug. 9.

“Archery season is two months away, so the sooner the decision is made, the better,” said DeNicola during a conference call at the commissioners’ July 12 discussion session.

Mt. Lebanon recently received letters from the Pennsylvania Game Commission affirming that none of the municipality’s remaining $37,175 deer management budget will be allowed to be used for any form of deer sterilization methods.

“What we have not yet gotten the game commission to agree to, and they have not issued a permit for it anywhere in Pennsylvania, is a deer sterilization or contraception research project,” said McGill. “They do not feel that’s an effective method to control a deer population, especially when you haven’t reached an acceptable level of that population in a community.”

In addition to the hunts conducted last season, Mt. Lebanon has implemented 28 deer crossing signs across the municipality, hosted public forums at the library, banned deer feeding and helped residents understand fencing rules and regulations.

DeNicola said that if the decision is made to continue the controlled hunt – while being able to operate on the Twin Hills Park property, which is the subject of a lawsuit against the hunt filed by Scott Township – that the program will more successful than last year because of the hunters’ familiarity with the area.

“Doing nothing is not going to make it better,” DeNicola said about the overall situation. “It’s just about taking the best steps.”