Re: “Wildlife-management reform is long overdue,” comment, Aug. 11.
In my opinion, the Raincoast Conservation Foundation commentary by Chris Genovali and Paul C. Paquet was a narrow, one-sided, tunnel-vision view of wildlife management in British Columbia. Raincoast’s only agenda is to raise funds for their foundation and pander to the uninformed.
I have hunted in this province for more than 40 years, and have been very concerned about wildlife management and population decreases for a long time. Hunters in this province have contributed and continue to contribute millions of dollars annually to the Habitat Conservation and Restoration Fund.
Wildlife management in this province does not exist in isolation. There are many factors affecting wildlife and management decisions. One of the biggest factors affecting wildlife numbers is habitat loss.
Industrial activities, resource extraction, infrastructure development and an ever-expanding human footprint conflict with and threaten all wildlife. These activities force wildlife out of their traditional areas, and force them to co-exist in an urban/industrial environment. This is why there is ever-increasing wildlife/human conflict in communities throughout the province.
The Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations has some very competent wildlife biologists and managers. They bring a lot of commitment and passion to the table, but are often handcuffed by underfunding issues, political agendas and lobby groups.
Wildlife management is not as simple as Raincoast would have you believe. Hunters are not the “evil beings” that this foundation portrays them to be. On the contrary, hunters belong to conservation organizations, participate in habitat restoration and are the “eyes and ears” on the ground in many remote locations of the province. They are often some of the first to raise the alarm concerning wildlife and habitat.
While I might be proven wrong, I can’t say I have ever seen anyone associated with Raincoast involved in restoration work in the wilderness. Their rhetoric rings hollow when it comes to the “boots on the ground” stuff, in my experience.
Wildlife in this province is a renewable resource, which is in decline. This treasured resource should be enhanced and protected for all user groups. So let the ministry do its job, without interference from any lobby, or political group. Provide adequate funding.
If you are really concerned about wildlife in this province, educate yourself, volunteer with conservation groups and like-minded people. All user groups have to stop blaming one another, and work together for the betterment of all things wild.
Jim Giles lives in Sooke.
