The Natural Resources Commission late Thursday approved a conservation order to allow for hunting opportunities at P.J. Hoffmaster State Park. The park currently is closed to hunting and trapping.

"Hoffmaster State Park is overrun with white-tailed deer that are destroying much of the native vegetation in the park," said DNR Director Rebecca Humphries. "This order allows us to proceed with a plan to have hunting opportunities in the park this fall that will help us better manage the deer population there."

The order allows for the planning of managed antlerless deer hunts to reduce the existing herd and reduce ongoing environmental damage from the deer. Among the native plant species the deer have been eating at the park are trilliums, an endangered plant that is native to Michigan. The damage to the trilliums is so extensive, Humphries said, that the long-time Trillium Festival held annually at Hoffmaster had to be renamed to "Spring Blooms in the Dunes" to reflect the lack of trilliums.

The Parks and Recreation Division of the DNR will work in conjunction with the Wildlife Division to set up guidelines for the managed hunt. Those guidelines will be announced prior to the hunt, Humphries said.