Understanding the Anti-hunting Landscape in WA
Most of us have felt the effects of poor wildlife management afflicting Washington State, from decreasing hunting opportunity and stolen hunts, to declining ungulate numbers, and surging predator populations. Many of these changes can be pinpointed to well funded animal rights and anti-hunting organizations attempting to shift the way we manage wildlife in this state. These national groups have targeted our state and puppeted local preservationists groups in an effort to make WA ground zero for their cause. They have infiltrated our fish and wildlife commission, the legislature, and have made close allies in the governors office. Although motivations may differ between our state reps and the anti-hunting orgs, they all have pushed aside tried and true objective, science based management practices.
The ultimate goal of these groups is to destroy our successful, self-funding system of wildlife management (also known as the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation) and replace it with what is known as Rewildling.
These preservationist NGOs have latched on to the good intentions and disconnect the general public has from wildlife and hunting. Animal rights and anti-hunting organizations have honed on creating the perception of representing the non-hunting majority. They rely on misinformation, and deceptive emotional imagery to gain public support for the objectives they have. Their job is easy, but sharing the truths about hunting and wildlife management takes much more work.
These groups have abused the Equal Access to Justice Act and collected to fund their endless barrage of lawsuits and fill their coffers. The weaponization of the Endangered Species Act is another tool of anti-hunting orgs to keep recovered species, particularly carnivore species, from being managed or hunted and as a way to prevent the trapping pursuits of other species. These groups use lawsuits to prevent the delisting of species when protection is longer needed and is often a detriment to other species, ecosystems, and communities.
Rewilding
Rewildling is the unmanagement of wildlife and ecosystems. It is the green washed notion allowing nature to find its own “balance” without the human hand of intervention. This concept relies heavily on predator and carnivore species to create that “harmonious state”.
In this system hunters would not manage wildlife populations and would be removed from having a role in participating in stewarding the land. This idealized concept is also claimed to be the savior to climate change and biodiversity loss.
Rewilding and unchecked/oversaturated carnivore populations have led to the loss in biodiversity including the local extinction of Woodland Caribou and the declining moose and elk populations in Washington.
Reality
At CCW we realize that humans are part of nature and not apart from it. Mankind has hunted and participated in consumptive lifestyles since the beginning of our existence and we have evolved alongside wildlife. There is no such thing as rewilding without humans because we have always been there managing wildlife and ecosystems. The idea of rewildling may sound nice, but it is an impossibility in this changed modern world. Management is more necessary than ever to achieve balance and ensure detrimental and irrereverseable conditions are not inflicted upon our wildlife.
The record tells us that ending hunting doesn’t end or decrease the killing of animals because human-wildlife conflict is inevitable. It does lead to less animals being utilized to feed a family and decomposing in a landfill after tax-payer funded guns and trappers have to mitigate problems that paying sportsmen would have prevented.
Hunters, Trappers, and Anglers are true conservationists. We have a long history of success through science-based conservation in bringing species back from extinction. Not only do we play a vital biological role in management of the population of different species, supporting biodiversity, and in providing vital data to scientists, we pay far more into conservation than any other interest group… including well-funded preservationist clubs who seek to end human consumptive use of fish and wildlife.
Through our license fees and self-imposed excise taxes firearms, ammunition, archery equipment, fishing tackle, and motorboat fuels we have restored and sustained healthy fish and wildlife populations. Our fish and wildlife agency is supported by hunters, anglers, and trappers; just last year alone $82 million was generated to help fund conservation efforts of WDFW.
Hunters in the United States contribute over $1.6 billion annually to conservation efforts around the nation. Through the support of hunters the purchase of millions of acres of habitat has been facilitated, benefiting both game and non-game species, and providing outdoor recreation opportunities for non-hunters.