Stealing our heritage as hunters in BC

[monilynno]

BC Hunters, this is a call to action! Steve Thomson Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations has seen fit to hand over 40% of the annual tag allotment to guides and outfitters taking some 5000 tags away from British Columbia hunters. http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/fw/wildlife/harvest_alloc/ You can also read more on the Oceola Fish and Game Club web site. https://www.facebook.com/…/Oceola-Fish-and…/321839671174426…

Fish, Wildlife and Habitat Management - Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations -...
A letter was sent to all guides in the province, on December 14, 2012, informing them of interim...
ENV.GOV.BC.CA

[monilynno]

http://bcwf.net/index.php/new-items-sp- ... s-releases

[dogspoiler]

It's very easy to understand. We put the government in place, we elect them, we pay them, we cover the expenses of their operation. As a gesture of thanks for this, they take payments from various groups and screw us. Simple.

[Glacier]

... and people wonder where the "rape culture" comes from... it comes from the people at the top.

Signed,

Ben Dover.

[monilynno]

influence peddling?
cronyism?
Illegal? Who knows but it should be..

[KL3-Something]

Bingo!

[Relentless]

Ah yes, how would it look if those that contributed didn't get their way!
I guess money really does Talk.
Steve Thompson appears to be doing some serious damage lately to the lives of the "not so rich and famous"
First, Bill 13, and now this.
It is clear that Mr. Thompson is not acting on everybody's best interests, but possibly just a handful.
I have really learned to hate this man, that's why I never voted for his party.

[annexi]

This stinks. It's just another example of the power of money/lobbying (Guide/Outfitters Association of BC) to buy the rules. And another example of natural resources being sold off to corporate interest. Going from a 5% allocation of killable moose/elk for outfitters to 25% ?!

Personal/family hunting has been a way of life for as long as Canadians have walked this land. In a time where people increasingly hunt for healthy meat, and many can't afford organic, it's just another affront to the regular joe citizen.

And trophy hunters? The trophy hunters leave the meat behind. Slaughter, waste and excess. Killing for the pleasure of the kill. Put the rack on the wall. Barbaric. And this is who/what the BC government is catering to. Where is the justice?

[annexi]

influence peddling?
cronyism?
Illegal? Who knows but it should be..

$43,000 + donated to the BC Liberals (for the most part) over a 4-year period by the Guide & Outfitter Association of BC.

$500 donated by the BC Wildlife Federation (the voice of the hunter) over the same period.

That pretty much sums it up. Money = power. This system SUCKS.

[rustled]

...And trophy hunters? The trophy hunters leave the meat behind. Slaughter, waste and excess. Killing for the pleasure of the kill. Put the rack on the wall. Barbaric. And this is who/what the BC government is catering to. Where is the justice?

Hunters from outside the country sometimes choose not to take the meat home with them, but that does not mean it is left behind in the bush as your post may imply to some. As I understand it, discarding good meat in the bush could actually cost a guide outfitter his/her livelihood. Meat not wanted by the hunter is properly dressed, and can then be distributed by the guide outfitter to local people who need it.

It's hardly surprising the industry prefers a Liberal government over one more likely to bow to pressure from the anti-hunting environmental movement and shut them down. Resident hunters may want to keep this in mind. And FWIW, the substantial income collected by the government for non-resident licencing does help cover the cost of conservation services.

[bob vernon]

Leftist NDPers and especially Greens are almost all against hunting. They prefer to sit in front of the television and eat their granola and whine about real men getting out in the wilderness and harvesting the bounty that God has provided.

[annexi]

Hunters from outside the country sometimes choose not to take the meat home with them, but that does not mean it is left behind in the bush as your post may imply to some. As I understand it, discarding good meat in the bush could actually cost a guide outfitter his/her livelihood. Meat not wanted by the hunter is properly dressed, and can then be distributed by the guide outfitter to local people who need it.

I meant the hunter himself is not interested in the meat - but thanks for the precision of words.

... And FWIW, the substantial income collected by the government for non-resident licencing does help cover the cost of conservation services.

What substantial income is that you refer to?

[annexi]

Leftist NDPers and especially Greens are almost all against hunting. They prefer to sit in front of the television and eat their granola and whine about real men getting out in the wilderness and harvesting the bounty that God has provided.

lol real men hunt do they?

[rustled]

What substantial income is that you refer to?

Guide outfitters' annual licences, assistant guides' annual licences, non-residents' hunting licences, non-residents' species tags, leaseholds on camps, etc.

Actually, they generate quite a bit of income generally. From this page: http://www.newsroom.gov.bc.ca/2014/05/new-five-year-guide-outfitter-licence-introduced.html

Quick Facts:
- There are approximately 245 licensed guide outfitters in the province, employing over 2,000 people.
- Roughly 5,000 non-residents hunt in the province each year.
- The guide-outfitting industry brings an estimated $116 million in economic activity to the province each year.

If you do want to better understand the industry, you might start here: http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/pasb/applications/process/game_guide.html

[monilynno]

Rustled, Resident hunters pump 229 million into the BC economy.
Resident hunters in BC have risen from 80 thousand to over 120 thousand over the last few years, so at the same time there are more of us the government gives away 40% of the animals to rich foreign hunters reducing the amount available to feed BC families. I personally know hunters that have faithfully entered the draws for 20 years in a row and have never won the draw.
Resident sports hunters put more into the economy than any other user group. The government is just banking on the fact that we will continue to pony up the cash even with fewer opportunities. Funny how they have been crying over the reduced number of hunters over the last few years and then as soon as the numbers increase they hit us with this. SHAMEFUL
Oh and there are some bad outfitters out there, I've see and heard the stories.