In last week’s column, I discussed some of the facts regarding the B.C. government’s planned cull of 184 grey wolves from the South Selkirk Mountains and South Peace region.
On one hand, you have the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations which says the cull is needed in order to protect dwindling herds of mountain caribou in both of these areas. A ministry statement, dated Jan. 15, 2015 says, “the evidence points to wolves being the leading cause of caribou mortality” in these areas. It also says that while “other caribou recovery efforts, including habitat protection and restoration, are already in place… if we wait for these measures to have an impact it will be too late.”
On the other hand, you have a fair number of critics who have been quick to say the government’s plan is ill-conceived, unscientific and shortsighted, not to mention simplistic, cruel and politically motivated. Critics of the cull point to habitat degradation, fragmentation and loss as being the major contributing factors in the decline of caribou numbers. They also say that wolf culls carried out in the past have done little to stabilize caribou populations.
In spite of mounting criticism, the government appears to be standing by its commitment to carry out the planned cull of 184 wolves by shooting them from a helicopter.
While some critics see the wolf as being a scapegoat for the government’s lack of foresight when it comes to habitat protection, others view the cull as being simply cruel and barbaric. They point out wolves are highly intelligent creatures with complex social structures not unlike humans. Then there are those who suggest these particular herds of caribou are doomed anyway you look at it, and say that right or wrong, the wolf cull is little more than an exercise in futility.
There is one other way of looking at the wolf cull. According to the government’s own estimates, the cull will cost somewhere in the neighbourhood of $575,000. That works out to about $3,125 per wolf.
Not an insignificant amount of money. I cannot help but feel all that money might be better spent on formulating a long-term plan to protect all the animals, including at-risk species such as the mountain caribou, which have been adversely effected by man’s incursion into their natural habitat. And then there’s those creatures that will be affected by such things as proposed oil and gas pipelines in the north, or hydro-electric dams such as the one the province just agreed to on the Peace River.
Granted, the dam site is not in the South Peace region where the wolf cull will take place, but you get my drift. Where is the incentive for this or any other government to create and implement long-term wildlife protection policies and establish protected habitat areas when there is a distinct possibility there will be mineral extraction, development and/or oil and gas pipelines running through the same areas?
All we know for sure is the provincial government is willing to destroy 184 grey wolves in order to buy a little more time for two herds of mountain caribou that exist on the edge of oblivion.
In this instance, the province does indeed appear to be caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place. The problem is the government has created the hard place – not just for themselves but for all the wildlife in the province -– by not having a proper wildlife protection policy.
More than ever before, we really do need a proper, realistic, long-term wildlife protection policy in this province.
