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No drones, new hunting course

Several changes to the territory’s Wildlife Act, passed in 2014, as well as the rollout of some aspects of the act are up for public debate until June 30.

Banning the use of drones in hunting for non-Indigenous hunters is one of the bigger amendments being introduced.

The GNWT is proposing a pest designation for wild the boars, allowing anyone to hunt or capture boars without a hunting license, tags, seasons or bag limits. Wild boars have been seen as close to the NWT border as Liard Hot Springs. Wikmedia Commons photo

There have been no specific incidents that have led to the need for drone regulation, but concerns have been raised around the territory about the use of drones in hunting, according to Rob Gau, manager of biodiversity conservation in the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ wildlife division.

“We’ve heard lots of concerns – everything from fair chase principle for hunting to making sure that Indigenous hunting rights are fully protected,” says Gau.

He says these concerns were brought up by the Wildlife Act Working Group, with membership from wildlife co-management authorities and Indigenous governments across the NWT, as well as from its Stakeholders Wildlife Advisory Group, which has members from tourism, outfitting and industry.

Another large item is the rollout of the Harvester Training Course – now called the Hunter Education Course – which is already called for in the act.

The course would be mandatory for new hunters, those who can’t prove they’ve held a valid hunting license in the last five years, those who haven’t taken a harvester training course elsewhere in Canada. General hunting license holders would be exempt from the course. Those who break hunting laws would be required to take it.

“It’s about learning respect for the land and respectful, responsible hunting,” says Gau, adding that it was developed with the working and advisory groups.

“Even though (Indigenous) rights-holders wouldn't be required to take it, we've heard from many elders that they want these tools available for their youth in their communities,” he says.

The course will cover being a responsible hunter, ecology and wildlife management, laws and regulations in the NWT, hunting skills, preparing for and planning a hunt, going on a hunt and survival and bush skills.

“And then there's a whole number of appendices that are a resource about, you know, how to cook the meat and making checklists and identify wildlife,” says Gau.

Another item up for public review is preventing wild boars from moving into the NWT. The boars, which are known to carry disease and be destructive to habitat, have been seen moving north in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as close to our border as the Liard Hot Springs. The GNWT is proposing a pest designation for boars, allowing anyone to hunt or capture boars without a hunting license, tags, seasons or bag limits.

An amendment has been proposed to split up the designation of woodland caribou into the more specific designations of boreal and Northern mountain caribou.

Other proposals include regulating the import of domestic sheep in order to avoid contact with bison and avoid spreading a known and fatal disease; limiting the import of live mule and white-tailed deer, as well as most harvested products from them, to avoid spreading Chronic Wasting Disease to Northern ungulates such as caribou; and a prohibition of importing bats to avoid the spread of White-Nose Syndrome to native species. There are also proposed regulations to conserve bats’ summer roost sites.

More information on these and other proposed amendments and regulations are available on the ENR’s website and feedback can be mailed or emailed to Gau.