Click here for the Alberta Fish and Game Association’s Nov. 7 news release.

Click here for the Government of Alberta news release that notes the Wildlife Amendment Act 2003.

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EDMONTON — At the same time as announcing plans to increase penalties for poaching, the Alberta government is making it harder for the people who enforce poaching laws to do their jobs, says the president of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees.

“While it is a positive idea to introduce a law raising fines for poachers, the department has cut operating funds to front-line Fish and Wildlife enforcement officers to the point that they are unable to enforce the law as the public deserves,” said AUPE President Dan MacLennan.

Operating budgets for fish and wildlife enforcement districts across Alberta have been slashed from 20 per cent to 50 per cent, say AUPE members in the field.

“Obviously, a commitment to enforcement means we have to pay for enforcement,” MacLennan said.

Last week the province announced its legislative agenda for the spring sitting of the Legislature, which starts Nov. 18. Among the new laws will be the Wildlife Amendment Act, 2003, which will increase poaching penalties.

MacLennan called on the government to adequately finance Fish and Wildlife enforcement operations so that officers can do vital patrol and prevention work as well as respond to specific complaints. AUPE Local 005 represents Alberta’s small force of approximately 125 Fish and Wildlife Officers province-wide.

MacLennan said that in parts of the province today, Fish and Wildlife Officers have been told by their supervisors to restrict their driving so as not to use up extremely tight gasoline budgets, and stop or reduce patrols on weekends or at night — when illegal activities often take place.

Fish and Wildlife Officers say hunters and members of the public now frequently comment about their restricted hours. “So, obviously, poachers know that the reduced enforcement levels increase the likelihood they can get away with hunting and fishing illegally,” MacLennan said.

“The government promises that its new act will ‘improve enforcement,’” MacLennan observed. “This laudable goal cannot be achieved when Fish and Wildlife Officers are only allowed to respond to specific complaints and are no longer allowed to conduct the routine patrols that have nabbed most poachers.”

The provincial department’s own statistics tell the story, MacLennan noted.

In the 2000/2001 fiscal year, Fish and Wildlife Officers made 230,000 contacts with the public. In 2001/2002 that was down to 116,000, and in the 2002/2003 fiscal year it has fallen to 70,000.

“The department’s own documentation states that proactive compliance checks are the best way to identify non-compliance with fisheries, wildlife and parks laws,” MacLennan stated.

There are three key reasons Fish and Wildlife Officers need to be in the field, MacLennan said.

• Preventing harm to endangered species and other environmental damage.
  
• Protecting citizens and owners of livestock and property from such illegal activities as discharging firearms close to buildings and night hunting.
  
• Helping ensure Alberta’s tourism industry remains economically viable.