7B moose hunting opportunities to be reduced....

[1899]

The province is proposing to close or reduce moose hunting opportunities in certain areas of 7-31 and 7-32:

Proposed Regulations:
The Province is proposing changes to moose hunting regulations for licensed hunters within the Peace Moberly Tract (PMT), which includes portions MUs 7-31 and 7-32 (see map A1). If implemented, the regulation changes may help to maintain the ability of First Nations to carry out their traditional right to harvest moose during certain seasons and / or specified areas within the PMT and increase bull:cow ratios to above recommended levels. The proposed changes include:
1. Closure of ‘any bull’ moose season that currently runs from August 15th to 31st within the PMT
2. Implementation of moose rut closures (September 25th to October 10th)
3. No hunting of general open season bull moose (spike-fork/tripalm/10-points) within the PMT from September 25th to October 10th (inclusive);
4. Implementation of a “No Shooting Area” adjacent to the Saulteau community; and,
5. Closure of youth cow or calf Limited Entry Hunting season within the PMT





The rationale for this is:

The PMT is an area of significant cultural importance to Saulteau and other Treaty 8 Nations. The PMT encompasses approximately 107,000 hectares of land, located south of the Peace River and extending south to Moberly Lake (see map A1). With the approval of Site C and the construction-related permits, the Province is prepared to propose a series of regulatory changes for licensed hunters of moose within the PMT in response to the findings and recommendations of the Site C Joint Review Panel, including Recommendation 20:

“The Panel recommends that the Province set aside the hunting, fishing and trapping rights in the Peace Moberly Tract for people holding Section 35 rights under the Constitution Act, 1982. The Panel also recommends that the Province and affected First Nations enter discussions on the Area of Critical Community Interest with a view to the harmonious accommodation of all interests in this land”


Interesting how the review panel suggests restrictions in exclusive favour of aboriginal people. I guess this is how consultations work these days. I'm not sure the BCWF was even informed of this prior to publication. Here is the BCWF response:
http://bcwf.net/images/stories/ResidentPriorityProgram/PMTRegProposalComment.pdf

[BRvalley]

The PMT is just the start, the ACCI is a larger area and seems likely to follow suit

[1899]

The PMT is just the start, the ACCI is a larger area and seems likely to follow suit

I am concerned about the direction we are heading....

[tinhorse]

It is really scary how this government is taking from the majority to compensate a minority, whether it be a group of people or companies getting compensated..... Just wrong. If this goes through and more opportunities are taken above this in 7b I would bet that poaching would go up substantially. Sad...

[Vladimir Poutine]

So this way the Province can institute what is really the closing of moose hunting by tying it to Site C. So a project that will cost BC Taxpayers over 10 BILLION dollars, with no regulatory oversight is now the payoff to FN at the expense of the ones ( us ) that will pay for the Site C boondoggle.

[rgn5hunt]

Only a year and a bit has passes since the BC govt rammed the Allocation Policy through and infuriating many of us.
Seems they never thought about our concerns on this 7b moose / site C issue.
Not surprised with this, not happy about it.

[BRvalley]

I'm still not clear if the guide quotas have been/or will be reduced by this as well, I suspect that answer is obvious though...

7-31/32 is my main hunting area for moose, I was vocal pretty quickly after I found out...not the full email history, but here's a couple quick c&p's regarding the PMT and ACCI



Subject: RE: Proposed Changes to Moose Regs in Peace Region

The ACCI were identified by the FN communities to the EA board at the Site C meetings so the FN communities are the ones who developed them based on their interests and use of the areas. The current proposed regulation in the PMT is the only one being considered within the ACCI.





From: Baccante, Nick FLNR:EX <Nick.Baccante@gov.bc.ca>
Sent: November 3, 2015 1:52 PM
To: ; Addison, Christopher FLNR:EX
Cc: Bridger, Michael C FLNR:EX
Subject: RE: Proposed Changes to Moose Regs in Peace Region
hi

really happy to hear from local hunters, wish more people would engage in wildlife management discussions. You’re perceptive to note that perhaps this regulation is not necessarily about protecting moose numbers in the PMT, but regulations are also used for broader considerations such as socio-economic and legal obligations.

In this case this proposed regulation change came about in an effort to implement one of the many recommendations that came out of the environmental assessment hearing on Site C. In particular, for the provincial government to accommodate local First Nations (ie. west Moberly and Salteau) for the anticipated impacts of the project on their ability to hunt moose. Moose is extremely important as a food source for FN and this proposed regulation is an attempt at accommodating impacts by restricting licensed hunting.

On a broader scale, we recognize the importance of moose to this region, and we’re in the process of starting a moose management plan, which is the document we need that would help us determine levels of moose harvest, recognizing the range of productivity and other factors across the region. Elk is also high on the priority list for a management plan, and these are important to avoid being reactive to changes in populations, rather being proactive and have plans in place to stabilize population numbers and harvest potential by setting objectives.

Hope all this makes sense, feel free to contact us again and we’ll also be happy to provide any reports that we have prepared on wildlife inventories in our region.

cheers
nick

[Salty]

Yup its all about site C and getting buy in from FN for site C

[Angus]

Nothing more than a payoff for getting on board the Site C train

[kebes]

The best part is our mla's have already shown us how much the Liberal govt cares about resident hunters.... As much as this is stupid I have a feeling the only chance of it losing traction is a Liberal loss in 2017.

[Gateholio]

At a certain point hunters are going to make their own rules......

[one-shot-wonder]

The best part is our mla's have already shown us how much the Liberal govt cares about resident hunters.... As much as this is stupid I have a feeling the only chance of it losing traction is a Liberal loss in 2017.

Not sure what hunters in their right mind would vote for them in 2017..... they can try to appease FN and GO's all they want. 100K votes (x factor) will be lost along with the election. Battle lines were drawn last year....I don't have short memory!

[Angus]

Been covered

http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?122456-Moose-Hunting-Restrictions-Site-C

[Vladimir Poutine]

At a certain point hunters are going to make their own rules......

We are too law abiding for that. If we did we would be further marginalized.

[40incher]

Originally Posted by Gatehouse At a certain point hunters are going to make their own rules......



We are too law abiding for that. If we did we would be further marginalized.


Don't be so sure ...

When the citizens feel they have been pushed into a smaller and smaller box, and when the non-residents and the special-interests continue to hunt ... those citizens in turn will have very little reason to think common sense will ever be the norm again.

It has happened many times in the past after government and the bureaucracy are viewed as corrupt by the commoner.

[okas]

Canada is in a dream world . Just like England , the gov. sold it out for votes and destroyed it after a very few got rich and now what is left but a mess
votes:mad: like i am talking 3rd world immigrants

[okas]

the law is only for those who obey . allso a man with nothing has nothing to lose .
most poachers do not have a licence or job and we pay court cost and no fine for the poacher in 100 mile the guy got the meat back to feed the family .
Canada nice place to come to for sure

be a long time for a civil war in this country ...HELL I THOUGHT I WOULD BE DEAD BUY NOW

[40incher]

Gotta agree with that!

It will come down to feeding your family with the meat you want ... beef at $10.00 a pound doesn't do it for me.

Our government does not get it ... it's not about "sport or trophy" when push comes to shove ... it' about good food for the family.

[40incher]

Since I can't seem to get any reply to my comment supporting Gatehouse ... here is a quote I ran in to the other day while looking for something else!? That's what tends to happen as you get old!

Regardless, I think it speaks volumes ... especially from those pioneers that really knew the "simple life". How I hope for that time and space again!!




"If a law is unjust a man is not only right todisobey it, he is obligated to do so." - Thomas Jefferson

[HarryToolips]

Not sure what hunters in their right mind would vote for them in 2017..... they can try to appease FN and GO's all they want. 100K votes (x factor) will be lost along with the election. Battle lines were drawn last year....I don't have short memory!
I totally agree..so we voting for BC Conservatives, or do we have to vote for the BC NDP, as they probably have the only hope of dethroning the Liberals???