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Hunting for input on new Wildlife Act Legislative assembly committee wraps up consultations and begins work on report
Paul Bickford
Northern News Services
Published Monday, July 8, 2013
NORTHWEST TERRITORIES
A round of public consultations on the GNWT's proposed new Wildlife Act has concluded.
The consultations, which concluded on June 19, were undertaken by the legislative assembly's Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure.
"I can say that the consultation itself was very well received and we received various public inputs, such as people liked the Act. We didn't have anyone really against the Act," said committee chair Robert Hawkins. "So I'd say that we had some pretty good support."
Hawkins, Yellowknife Centre MLA, believes a lot of that support was because of the work the Department of Environment and Natural Resources did in advance of developing the legislation, adding it had worked with a lot of groups and aboriginal leadership.
"The bill wasn't developed overnight or even a year or two. This bill has been developed over a dozen years," he said.
"It has had a chance for a lot of input to be built. So when we got to the community, people were comfortable with the version that they saw."
The new act would be a complete rewrite of the existing Wildlife Act from 1988.
An attempt to update the bill in 2011 failed because of widespread opposition.
The recent consultations began in April and concluded on June 19 in Behchoko. The standing committee also visited Norman Wells, Tulita, Inuvik, Tsiigehtchic, Nahanni Butte, Fort Providence, Fort Simpson, Hay River, Fort Smith, Yellowknife and Dettah.
The committee is examining the proposed act submitted to the legislative assembly by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.
"The Wildlife Act is a significant bill and it has certainly garnered a lot of attention," Hawkins said. "The fact is this bill has a significant impact on a lot of people in the Northwest Territories. That's part of the reason why we want to have a broad base of consultation."
The MLA said the consultation went to each region, and to large and small communities.
A number of issues arose during consultation, including the Act's potential effects on land claim groups and the requirement for an annual meeting of organizations responsible for wildlife management.
"But the most significant change that has come forward this time around is the recognition of the aboriginal land claim groups and governments, as well as the relationship with the resource boards," Hawkins said.
The committee chair also said another issue was a requirement to report harvested wildlife.
Right now, aboriginal people, because of land claimant rights and the ability to harvest, don't have to report, he said. "However, it's been noted throughout the Northwest Territories that you can't manage wildlife without reporting your numbers. So that was a discussion brought up repeatedly
throughout the territory."
People generally don't see the need for reporting as an impediment to their ability to hunt, he said. "It was more about getting the clear numbers as to what was being harvested."
Attendance at the consultations ranged from more than 20 in some communities to just one person in Fort Simpson.
That one person in Fort Simpson on June 17 was Grand Chief Herb Norwegian of the Dehcho First Nations.
"I think the interest is there," Norwegian said, despite the low turnout. "It's just the time and people are just doing so many other things."
Despite Hawkin's assertions that the majority of people support the proposed act there are still groups who see major problems with the legislation.
The grand chief said there are still a lot of loopholes.
"They still need to tighten it up," he said. "They need to accommodate a lot of the issues that we're trying to resolve at the main table with the Deh Cho Process, because at the end when we complete the Deh Cho Process we will be responsible for wildlife in our territory and the proposed Wildlife Act needs to accommodate that. That was basically the point that we were putting to them."
A resident hunter also has issues with the legislation.
"I believe there are still numerous problems with the proposed Wildlife Act," said Wayne Keefe of Hay River.
Keefe said he doesn't believe the Department of Environment and Natural Resources has been treating resident
hunters in a fair manner.
He pointed to the "biased treatment" in the proposed act that would require safety training for resident hunters, but not for some other groups.
Hawkins said the committee has yet to make any decisions on the proposed act.
The six-person committee still has to investigate and clarify some of the suggestions it heard in the consultation process.
"What we'll do is we'll draft up a position and certainly we'll be submitting a report and a response to the legislature if all goes well, and I stress that because we still have a fair bit of work before us," Hawkins said. "But I assume all will go well and we'll be responding to the minister and to the public in the October session."
The act has already passed first and second reading in the legislative assembly.
Fact file
What's in proposed
new Wildlife Act?
* Co-operative management established.
* Conservation and management measures modernized.
* Fines increased for offences and alternative measures allowed as punishment.
* Co-operative governance through an annual meeting of organizations responsible for wildlife management in the NWT.
* People with aboriginal and treaty rights to only have agreed-upon ID to harvest in their area. Existing General Hunting Licences will be grandfathered.
* Other people will need one of the following licences:
* Resident hunting licence - residency requirement is reduced to one year from two years.
* Non-resident hunting licence - for Canadian citizens and permanent residents.
* Non-resident alien hunting licence - for non-Canadian citizens.
* Special harvester licences will continue to be granted on local recommendation.
* In order to be eligible for a hunting licence, a person must be at least 12 years old. Up to age 18, young hunters must be accompanied by someone who is at least 18 and entitled to hunt in the NWT. Someone under 18 may hunt without a licence under direct supervision of an adult hunter. There is no age requirement for hunters exercising an aboriginal or treaty right.
* The Department of Environment and Natural Resources will deliver harvester training courses to promote safety and good hunting skills.
* Resident hunters or special harvesters must successfully complete the training course to get a big-game tag, unless they have held a tag before. Non-residents must be accompanied by a licensed guide.
Source: Standing Committee on Economic Development and Infrastructure.
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