EGG HARBOR, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – Residents along the shoreline in Egg Harbor say they’ve had it with firework-like noises going off around the clock.
“It’s an obnoxious situation and I hope it doesn’t continue,” said Jeff Raduechel, who has a home in Egg Harbor that he stays at a few days a week.
The sound is an air cannon, attempting to move birds off nearby Hat Island.
Mike Neal, a DNR Conservation Warden for Door County, says at least 25 different people have called him over the past week about the noise.
“Last weekend it was really obnoxious,” said Raduechel, who thought he was hearing gunshots outside his home at first. “You could hear it in your house with all the windows closed up. I happened to go over to the hardware store and people were talking about it over there.
Raduechel says the loud sound was going off every three to four minutes, around the clock. A look through his binoculars confirmed it was coming from nearby Hat Island.
“And then you’d hear the cannon noise, you’d see birds fly up, so then it was obvious to me that’s where it was coming from,” said Raduechel.
Christiaan Jeanquart, of Sturgeon Bay, says he is trying to move the birds so he can grow 5,000 spruce trees. He says he was just made aware of the complaints and plans to change the direction of the cannons and the frequency for when they sound.
“As long as there was a written authorization issued from wildlife management allowing him to do this, he should be in good standing,” said Neal, although he has not seen the authorization.
Neal also says using cannons to move birds off islands has been going on in Door County for years.
“They just find another place where they’re not going to be disturbed,” said Neal.
“It appears that the guy is trying to be a bit more considerate because for instance right now, I’m not hearing it,” said Raduechel.
Raduechel says that’s encouraging, especially considering Door County’s part-timers and tourists are about ready to arrive.
Hat Island is part of Gibraltar township. While the town does have a noise ordinance, town officials have not heard any complaints about the cannons.
