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Little Rock Governor Asa Hutchinson appointed Philip Tappan of Little Rock Thursday to serve on the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission for a seven-year term.
Tappan, 60, is the youngest of five brothers, born and raised in Helena. In 1983 he graduated from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville with a degree in finance and banking.
Tappan spent much of his career in the food distribution industry, holding a majority stake in Quality Foods Group, and serving as its president from 2003 to 2005. Since 2004 he has been President of Tappan Land & Water, which owns natural resources in several Arkansas counties.
Tappan also served on the boards of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, the Arkansas Community Foundation, and the Arkansas Food Bank Network.
Hutchinson said Tappan’s leadership experience and public service make him an effective addition to the commission. Tappan’s passion for hunting and fishing will also resonate with the state’s outdoor community, added Hutchinson.
Gallery: AGFC Commissioner
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“Philip has a real passion for the outdoors, hunting and fishing,” said Hutchinson. “That is a yardstick for a person. Then it is his understanding of the need to protect and the responsibility we have for our incredible natural heritage.
“Philips’ business experience is particularly timely for our role with the Game and Fish Commission. There are business decisions to be made and new hunters and fishermen to be recruited in Arkansas and passed on to the next generation.”
Tappan said that as a fourth generation Arcansan who grew up in the Mississippi Delta, hunting and fishing are ingrained in his personal fabric. The outdoor lifestyle is fundamental to the state’s culture and economy.
“I have been fortunate that Arkansas’ natural resources will remain a cornerstone of my existence throughout my life,” said Tappan.
“Today I’m probably more of a duck and turkey hunter, but I still love all the other activities.”
Tappan said he experienced some sort of epiphany in 2006 when he and his partners considered adding property to the Wetland Reserve Program, a federal program that pays landowners to conserve natural wetlands.
“We heard that George Dunklin is doing some innovative things,” he said.
Dunklin from Stuttgart was a member of the Game and Fish Commission from 2005-12. He is also the past president and chairman of the board of directors of Ducks Unlimited and the owner of Five Oaks Duck Lodge.
“I turned to George, and a few days later we drove around with him and learned about soil manipulation, mulching undergrowth, water controls and planting complementary feeds,” Tappan said.
“I was bitten by habitat restoration. It started a whole new phase of life that continues to this day, learning how to improve habitat for the benefit of wildlife.”
Tappan said the experience demonstrated the connection between wildlife and habitat, proving that wildlife needs more than just vacant land to thrive.
“When I was younger, I used to do time farming and working outdoors, but it was a different kind of farming,” Tappan said.
“I realized the importance of replacing the inputs we were taking out as humans, like restoring texture to the terrain, to expedite wildlife benefits.”
Tappan said he grew up hunting squirrels and quails in the fields and hills around Helena.
He said he was aware of the immediate problems quail and wild turkeys are facing in Arkansas, but he said those obstacles might actually be symptomatic of wider problems.
“From a global perspective, we need to understand what is going on with all bird species, including the decline in songbirds,” Tappan said.
“These problems could be related to the decline in turkeys. We need to do more research, but I don’t think we can wait until we find an approximate cause to come up with significant solutions.”
On Tuesday, Tappan took part in a tour of the Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area, much of which has been flooded. The wildlife and fish commission staff, including water bird biologist Luke Naylor, organized the tour to show commission members, lawmakers and wetland supporters the destruction wrought by prolonged flooding in the popular duck hunting area near Stuttgart.
“I couldn’t believe it,” said Tappan. “When you think about how warm it was and still have that kind of flooding in our forests. I listened to every word Luke said when he spoke to us, but what happens in Bayou Meto also ends up in private .
“As we educate the public about the dilemma of our public land, I hope that we will continue to mandate solutions for private landowners. I really think there is a broader perspective than just Bayou Meto and Hurricane [Lake WMA]. “
Tappan said joining the commission concurrently with a new director, Austin Booth, is an important transition period during which the commission can accelerate what he described as the current high level of performance.
He said budget constraints, extreme weather, changing patterns of waterfowl migration, chronic wasting diseases in deer and elk and the decline in turkey populations will continue to challenge the Game and Fish Commission.
On the other hand, Tappan said, it is crucial to address challenges today rather than trying to address them yesterday.
“You don’t have to be sick to get better,” said Tappan.
“I think that goes for the transition from Game and Fish with a new director and a new commissioner. I’m not critical of everything we’ve done in the past, but I want to keep improving.”
Tappan said he believed the commission should continue to prioritize hunting and fishing, not just as a management tool but as a societal foundation.
“I think hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities are the most challenging learning exercises in life, and I think the forests are the most relaxing places in the world,” said Tappan.
“It’s nothing like parenting, of course, but the amount you can learn in such a short amount of time by sharing hunting and fishing experience with another outdoor person is exponential in what you learn about them and the craft.
“There have been many, many hunts that I can’t remember if I had a great hunt or a medium hunt, but I remember the person I hunted with.”
“I’ve been fortunate to have Arkansas natural resources remain a cornerstone of my existence throughout my life,” said Philip Tappan Thursday after he was announced as the new Arkansas Game and Fish Commissioner. More photos at arkansasonline.com/72agfc/. (Arkansas Democrat Gazette / Staci Vandagriff)
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