The following letter to the Minister is in response to the new Moose Management quotas for W.M.U.’s 48 and 55B.
Dear Minister:
Subject: Moose Management in W.M.U.’s 48 and 55B
The O.F.A.H. Board of Directors met this past weekend and would like you to know that we object in the strongest terms possible to the zero (0) adult moose validation tag quota for licensed, resident moose hunters which has been posted on the M.N.R. web site listing the 2003 Moose Validation Tag Draw quotas.
Respectfully, we need you to change this M.N.R. decision, and in its place for the 2003 moose hunting season implement the adult moose validation tag allocation, which was approved and implemented in the 2002 hunting season for W.M.U.’s 48 and 55B. This will result in:
- growth of the moose populations in W.M.U.’s 48 and 55B;
- allocation to aboriginal subsistence food harvest;
- a very small allocation to resident licensed moose hunters;
- a very small allocation to commercial outfitters; and
- an allocation to ecosystem function (i.e. wolf and bear predation).
Our recommendation ensures that the principles and practice of conservation are maintained in the management of Ontario’s moose resource: conservation is the protection, use, and management of natural resources to supply benefits at optimal sustainable levels for present and future generations. (The government of Ontario promised to implement this definition of conservation.) Our recommendation will not result in significant risk of licensed hunter overharvest, whereas a zero (0) allocation of tags to resident licensed hunters will pose risks in terms of loss of hunter support, cooperation, and confidence in M.N.R. moose management.
At this time, our second recommendation regarding these two W.M.U.’s is that the M.N.R. reconvene the Eastern Ontario Moose Roundtables so that they may specifically address potential options for calf harvest control in the future, which could also increase the moose populations in W.M.U.’s 48 and 55B.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this most serious matter.
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