heritage – The Outdoors Guy

Thanks to Bob Valcov(above) – Director of Safari Club International (SCI) Canada for the great letter he sent, on behalf of all hunters across the country!

Cheers Bob and keep up the great work!

January 7, 2013

Hug a Hunter

To Jeff Morrison – Outdoors Guy

As we go forward into this new year, it is time to recognize and show appreciation for everything Canadian hunters do to promote wildlife conservation across our great country. It is time to hug a hunter. I borrow the term from an ad campaign in Colorado.

Hunters have been and continue to be willing to pay the price in terms of volunteer time and in hard cash to protect wildlife and its habitat while others either pay lots of politically-correct lip service or, even worse, simply take the outdoors for granted.

Hunters do more for conservation than any other group. In fact, hunter-founded conservation organizations are principally responsible for bringing back North American wildlife that was almost extinct a century ago. Modern hunters in North America have never caused a wildlife species to become extinct, endangered, or even threatened. The truth is, every game species that is hunted has increased in number. Hunters most probably saved deer, elk, bear and waterfowl from extinction.

Payments for hunting and fishing licenses are the main method of financing the management and protection of wildlife and their habitats. Hunting and fishing are essential tools in wildlife management to maintain healthy and diverse populations of wildlife. Hunting and fishing develop a sense of personal accountability for Canada’s natural resources within individuals.

Hunter-based conservation organizations contribute millions to conservation projects. Last year, SCI Foundation alone granted $400,000 to North American wildlife projects; more than $4 million over the last ten years. One of these worthy projects, for example, is the Newfoundland Caribou Strategy. Over five years, the SCI Foundation has granted $250,000 to investigate the decline of woodland caribou in Newfoundland & Labrador; in other words, to establish the sound scientific evidence upon which intelligent future management decisions can be based.

It would be a serious mistake to discount the huge contribution made by Canadian hunters to the conservation of our wildlife and its habitat. So give a hunter a hug and thank them for their support of nature.

Sincerely,

Bob Valcov.

Director: Safari Club International-Canada.

Suite 200, 440 Laurier Ave. W./Ave. Laurier O.,Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1R 7X6; Tel: 613-683-LYNX (5969); www.SCI-Canada.ca

(Fur Institute of Canada Logo)

A private members Bill is threatening the future of Canada’s seal hunt!!

Representatives of Canada’s sealing community have responded to this legislation; introduced in the Senate this week by Mac Harb to end the commercial seal hunt in Canada.

“Mr. Harb’s claims are unfounded. The Canadian sealing industry is very much alive and well,” said Dion Dakins, Chair of the Seals and Sealing Network. “Consumer demand remains strong. And with positive results at the WTO and the European General Court, we feel there will be a level trading field for seal products.”

Exports between 2005 and 2011 were over $70 million (US) and seal products were exported to 35 different countries. The price for seal pelts has increased from 2009 levels at $15 a pelt to $20 – $25 a pelt in 2010 and 2011 and $32 in 2012.

“The Canadian sealing industry is crucial to the economies of Quebec, the Maritimes, and Canada’s Inuit populations,” added Rob Cahill, director of the Fur Institute of Canada and a leading actor in international relations for the Canadian seal industry. “The seasonal source of income can account for up to 35 per cent of a sealer’s annual income, and is available during a time of year when other rural employment opportunities are virtually non-existent.”

Estimates from the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and the province of Newfoundland and Labrador estimate that between 5,000 – 6,000 people acquire an income from the seal hunt for their families, communities and businesses. This amount is approximately one per cent of the total provincial population, and two per cent of its labour force.

“To put these statistics into context, this is similar to other locally-important industries such as crop production or forestry that each account for less than one per cent of Canadian GDP, but their local economic importance is undisputable,” said Cahill.

Denis Longuépée, a sealer from the Magdalen Islands added, “The animal rights groups are harming our communities and this bill is just another attempt to crush a viable industry. The facts don’t support their claim that our industry is disappearing.” “The animal rights groups and Senator Harb do not understand the people in these communities.” Longuépée added, “Seal products harvested in our province and in parts of Atlantic Canada provide significant economic benefit to the regions, as well as other parts of the world. “With continued market demand for Omega-3 oils and emerging markets for the use of other seal products in research and development, as well as the traditional uses in furs and leather, we expect the market demand to keep growing.”

Should the seal hunt remain part of our Canadian heritage? I beleive it should without question!

What do you think?

Outdoorsguy

Tag: heritage

Happy New Year from Safari Club International

Bill tabled to end Canadian seal hunt