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