SANDPOINT - A majority of Sandpoint City Council members approved a request from Sandpoint Airport officials to hunt deer within city limits this year.

A measure proposed to reduce the deer populations living around the airport, the deer hunt will be conducted by experienced bow hunters filling their normal hunting tags during the regular hunting season. Before airport and county officials could authorize the hunt, however, they needed to secure permission from the city to discharge weapons - in this case, archery weapons - within Sandpoint limits.

"I hate to say we have to kill some deer, but that's a whole lot better than (letting people die)," Bonner County Commissioner Mike Nielsen said.

According to Nielsen and airport manager Dave Schuck, the need couldn't be more urgent to establish some kind of control plan for deer in the area. They said a large population of the animals have come to permanently reside in the area and are no longer frightened of airplanes. That prompts them to wander onto the runway, which represents a huge danger to aircraft that are taking off and landing. The airport has seen several near misses and even some airplane damage and crashes from deer on the runway. According to airport officials, a crash involving a large jet and several deaths would be a major national event and a potential death blow to airport operations.

Eventually, a wildlife fence will be installed on airport property to serve as a permanent solution. However, this fence is prohibitively expensive, and the Federal Aviation Administration hasn't cleared project funding until 2019. That leaves officials with a need for a temporary solution to keep accidents from occurring.

According to Schuck, permitted bow hunting may be just what they need. He said the hunts will follow all standard Idaho Fish and Game rules and be conducted by bow hunters who have been screened and invited by airport administrators. The restriction to bow weapons should reduce the risk of accidental injury or property damage, he added. Once residential deer are cleared out, officials will only have to deal with transitory deer, which are naturally frightened of aircraft.

The vast majority of people who spoke at a public hearing on the issue agreed it was a necessary action to reduce risk. Meeting attendee Forrest Schuck said he saw 27 deer around the airport on Monday alone.

"It's really hard to overstate the danger here," he said. "It's a matter of life and safety."

There's also serious financial interests at risk, supporters added. For one thing, the lack of proper precautions puts huge liability on the county. For another, a major accident involving aircraft from prominent local businesses like Quest or Tamarack could have huge economic consequences for the region.

Council members cleared the request with a 3-2 vote, allowing airport authorities to move forward with the plan. According to Nielsen, the airport deer hunts will likely occur over the next three or four years until the wildlife fence can be installed.