Hunting has always been an integral part of the social fabric of British Columbia. But for many B.C. resident hunters, that social fabric has become frayed with the introduction of the province's new Wildlife Allocation Policy.
In mid-December, the B.C. government stunned the hunting community by announcing sweeping changes to the province's Wildlife Allocation Policy. The new policy increased the number of hunting opportunities available to guide-outfitters, who guide out-of-province trophy hunters for a fee, and reduced the number of hunting permits available to B.C. residents, many of whom rely on hunting to feed their families.
The division of wildlife between foreign hunters and resident hunters, after conservation and First Nations requirements are satisfied, has always been a contentious issue. The new wildlife allocation policy applies to certain big game species - such as elk, moose, mountain sheep, and bison. Because the demand for these species is greater than supply, B.C. resident hunters are placed on a lottery draw for hunting opportunities. Conversely, foreign hunters can hunt every year in B.C. so long as they have enough money.
Lottery draw hunting is already oversubscribed. It is not uncommon for resident hunters to face odds of 30-to-1 when applying for a permit to hunt certain species. With this new wildlife allocation policy, the chances of residents receiving a hunting permit for wild game has become an even bigger long shot.
In most other provinces and U.S. states, foreign hunters are limited to five to 10 per cent of the wildlife allocation. Under the new B.C. policy, out-of-province hunters are entitled to up to an unprecedented 40 per cent of the allocation for some species. Resident hunters share of moose have been reduced by five to 15 per cent across much of B.C, and 10 per cent for Roosevelt elk. The bottom line is that B.C. residents are being asked to take a back seat to non-residents when it comes to hunting in their own province.
Hunting has undergone a resurgence in B.C. as demand for food security increases in line with the popularity of the 100-Mile Diet. British Columbians hunt to reconnect with their natural environment, spend time with family and friends and to fill their freezer with wild, healthy, organic meat.
Sustenance hunting has also become a popular family activity, and the fastest growing segments joining the movement are women and youth. Over the past 10 years, B.C. resident hunters have increased by 20 per cent, from 84,000 to 102,000. The number of graduates of the Conservation Outdoor Recreation Education (CORE) program, a prerequisite to becoming a licensed hunter, are at record highs.
The B.C. Wildlife Federation (BCWF), the province's largest and oldest conservation organization, has also experienced explosive growth; membership is up 70 percent in the last eight years from 27,000 to over 46,000. In stark contrast, the number of foreign trophy hunters coming to B.C. has declined by 30 percent from 6,500 to 4,500.
How can the B.C. government realistically justify giving a larger share of hunting permits to approximately 245 guide-outfitters to serve a shrinking base of foreign hunters while limiting wildlife access to 102,000 B.C. resident hunters?
Until this new policy was introduced, allocation splits between residents and non-residents were determined through a formula based on wildlife demand and conservation requirements set out in the 2007 Wildlife Allocation Policy. The ink had barely dried on the 2007 policy before the Guide Outfitters Association of B.C. (GOABC) started lobbying the provincial government to scrap the policy claiming a loss of $8.8 million in 2010. The government commissioned a study to look at the economic impacts this policy was having on individual guide-outfitter businesses focusing on the 2002 - 2006 time period. These were the peak performance years for guide-outfitters in B.C. Their share of wildlife allocation was at an all-time high; the global economy was relatively strong; and the weak Canadian dollar enabled guides to attract U.S. hunters with discounted prices. This was the high watermark for the industry. Using this period as a baseline to assess the impact of the policy resulted in a distorted view of the true situation.
The report found that the economic impact was less than $4 million, approximately half of what GOABC claimed. Despite this overstatement of the economic implications, the government elected to disproportionately increase guide-outfitters' share of wildlife for foreign hunters in the updated policy while reducing access to local hunters.
Wildlife is an important public resource, and the revised Wildlife Allocation Policy represents a troubling shift towards privatizing a public resource. In addition, lost hunting opportunities for residents could impact wildlife conservation efforts; BCWF members alone donate over 300,000 hours to conservation projects across the province. Resident hunters pay over $9 million annually in license fees and surcharges - money that goes toward conservation to ensure we have wildlife for generations to come. Resident hunters also support the local economy, spending $230 million annually in hunting-related activities. These expenditures are particularly important to rural communities hard hit by the economic downturn and a decline in resource-based jobs, where resident hunters rely on wild game to help feed their families.
Wildlife policy should encompass much more than just protecting the economic interests of a handful of businesses. It should reflect the environmental, social and cultural importance wildlife offers the residents of B.C. It's time for the government to start treating wildlife as the integral public resource it is, rather than a commodity for sale to the highest bidder.
George Wilson is President of the B.C. Wildlife Federation.
