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VOLUME 23 NO. 6 June 2004
SSA Boat owners: On June 19 or 20th ,you could drop off a bird survey team on islands like Lyal, Whitecloud or Chantry, fish for the day and pick them up at dinner time for return. Alternatively, you could join the survey team and pick up some experience at identifying wild birds. The Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas is a volunteer project to document all the species of birds breeding throughout the province. Birdwatchers participating in the project need to be able to visit the islands in Lake Huron and Georgian Bay. If you have a boat and are willing to volunteer to take birdwatchers out to the various islands on the weekend of June 19/20, please contact SSA member Cindy Cartwright at 389-2585 or by email at <mailto:pom@bmts.com>pom@bmts.com Your Membership Chair is Moving Yes, it’s true!!! I am moving to R R # 4, Tara ON N0H-2N0 Fire Number 021445 as of the first week of July. If you go to my former Owen Sound address, you won’t be able to get a key or pay your membership. Actually, this is a test to see who reads the newsletter. The simple instructions as to how to find me are: at the main intersection in Keady (there only is one) turn west and our place is about a km down the road. Come on in or just leave information in my mailbox. Unfortunately, I don’t have a telephone number there yet but will publish it in the next newsletter. Thanks 2004 Board of Directors and Committee Chairs Blake Smith, President and Chairperson Forest and Wildlife Advisory Committee, Liaison CPFO Fred Geberdt: 1st Vice President and Co-chairperson Salmon Spectacular, O.F.A.H Owen Sound Conservation Dinner Committee Chairperson and O.F.A.H. Delegate Jim Weir: 2nd Vice President and OFAH Delegate Richard Manley: Past President Dennis Wiseman: Recording Secretary Murray Smart: Treasurer Mike Prevost: Correspondence Secretary and Chairperson Fisheries Advisory Committee Bill Beamish: Director and Shot Gun Sports Committee Chairperson Ken Cowtan: Director and Co-chairperson Property Committee Nancy Cowtan: Director and Co-chairperson Property Bill Douglas: Director and Archery Shooting Coordinator Grant Ferris: Director and General meeting Co-ordinator, O.F.A.H. Delegate Chris Geberdt: Fund Raising Chairperson Fred Hunt: Director and Shooting Sports Range Committee Chairperson, O.F.A.H. Delegate Dan Laxton: Director Dave Arnold: Gord Maher Memorial Centre Coordinator (appointed, non director) Carol Barfoot: Social Committee Chairperson (appointed, non director) Coy Currie: Fish Hatchery Coordinator (appointed, non director) Geoff Ford: Co-chairperson Salmon Spectacular (appointed, non director) John Ford: Membership Chairperson (appointed, non director) Joe Gray: Handgun Program Co-Chairperson (appointed, non director) Dave Hartrick: Gord Maher Memorial Centre Assistant, Fish and Game Contest Committee Chairperson (appointed, non director) Ray Hoffer: Firearms Safety and Hunter Education Instructor (appointed, non director) Brian Kinchen: Firearms Safety Instructor (appointed, non director) Cliff Springer: Club supplies Chairperson (appointed, non director) Mary Stephenson: Get Outdoors Youth Program Liaison (appointed, non director) Sarah Stephenson: Get Outdoor Youth Program President (peer elected Get Outdoors, non director) Bill Thompson: Newsletter Editor/Chair (appointed, non director) Stew Wallace: Firearms Safety Instructor and Handgun Program Co-Chairperson (appointed, non director) Rob Wilson: Co-chairperson Salmon Spectacular (appointed, non director) PRESIDENT'S CORNER Our club has been financially stretched lately, but our hardworking fundraisers keep coming through. Our share of the OFAH conservation dinner in March brought in over $5,000.00, the Rainbow Boat Club fish food donation of $1,000.00 was most gratefully received, and the Victoria Day weekend barbeque at Wal-Mart brought in over $5,000.00. Note that Wal-Mart matched dollar for dollar up to $2,000.00- thanks Wal-Mart, our members won't forget this. We have a long way to go to get back in the black, but our very dedicated volunteers will persevere and see that we prevail. On a different note, we are very sorry to hear about the passing of Bob Ellah's wife. To those of you who don't know him, in the early 60's, Bob was a just beginning ball-of-fire CO in our area, who spent a great deal of time working with the SSA deputies. Our collective sympathies to you, Bob. The upcoming June 3rd meeting will be our last until September, and will be primarily a social function. Carol Barfoot has organized the beer and hot dog part, and Dave Hartrick has set things up for club recognition's and awards. Also note that our club beef barqeque is on June 6th, and we look forward to seeing many of you there. So, everybody, summer's coming, enjoy it and we'll see you again in September when the Salmon Spectacular is over, and the ducks and geese are on the wing. Our members should also note that Larry Miller, a member of our club is a candidate in the upcoming Federal election. Blake Smith. President Youth Activities Program We had lots of helpers turn out for pitch in day and tree planting. Very important dates to remember. Mark your calendar for July 10th, kids fishing day. This year we are going to try to go to Isaac Lake and we need lots of boats and fishermen and ladies to make this a great success. I will be asking for help with this, so hopefully we will have a good response. Summer campout is July 24 and July 25th. Call for info. The shooting ranges will be closed for campout and also August 28th while the Youth Council has a rendezvous weekend. I still need email addresses for my records and contact lists. My email is mary.stephenson@sympatico.ca. Mary Stephenson Youth Co-ordinator 363-2893 FISHERIES ADVISORY Committee The rainbow eggs we collected have eyed up and gone through our automatic sorting machine showing normal mortality. We should soon have close to 95.000 young fry to start feeding. Our salmon are ready to be released, permits have been acquired and the call will soon be going out for help to do the stocking. Water temperatures in the hatchery have gotten up to 9 degrees which is good for our brown trout. The Bruce Peninsula Sportsmens Club were down recently to pick up 15,000 of our salmon fingerlings to raise and release into their fisheries area as part of our usual inter-club cooperation. Boat draw ticket sales have been going well from the start and Coy Currie is always in need of volunteers to man the booths so if you think you have a couple of hours to spare please give him a call. A good turnout of our regular members and juniors helped to plant 588 cedar trees on Peter Hood,s Pringle Creek project which is now completed. We will be having a fisheries committee meeting on Monday June 7th at 7:00 pm at the CIub house for anyone interested in attending. Mike Prevost F.A.C. Chairman Archery Committee: Our second Archery Tournament for the year was held over the Holiday weekend on Sunday May 23/04. It was a Traditional only 3D shoot with a 10 a.m. start. The weather was unfortunately not the best so the attendance was less than hoped for, however the brave soles who participated made the best of it and chalked up some good scores. The results of this Tournament are as follows: Category
I would like to thank all of those who attended, and helped in this tournament. Bill Douglas, Chairperson Archery Committee NATIVE AFFAIRS We have been informed that the Saugeen/Cape Croker Indians and MNR have agreed to abide by the conditions of the previous commercial fishing agreement, until a new agreement can be ratified. We can take some comfort in the fact that there should be peace on the water for now. We have a great deal of discomfort in not knowing what is on the table for any new agreement. Is the MNR able to look after sportsmen's concerns? Will political expediency or financial concerns mean that the Indians' demands are met with giveaways of natural resources? Blake Smith, Chairman, Native Affairs . FORESTS AND WILDLIFE The cormorant control issue is one that should be viewed as a matter of wildlife that affects other wildlife, vegetation, and very much, our fishery. We have to applaud the Minister of Natural Resources for standing up to the terrific amounts of screeching and bellowing coming from the animal rights activists, when he allowed the Presqu'ile kill of nesting cormorants. He has taken a terrific pounding from the politically-correct zealots who are obviously used to having their each and every demand met. We hope that he perseveres. We have stated many times that one of the hunter's greatest threats comes from uninformed and/or antagonistic municipal councils and other local organizations. With reference to the foregoing, we received a copy of OFAH government relations and communications manager, Greg Farrant's, letter to the Essex Region Conservation Authority, that may apply to their efforts to affect/stop hunting on their property. Those of us who are acquainted with Greg know that he is an extremely hardworking individual who is extraordinarily busy working with municipal, provincial and federal governments getting out the good word. Greg says it well enough that we wish we had said it ourselves. Please read his letter carefully, in order that you can use it when we are under attack. Blake Smith, Chairman, Forests & Wildlife . OFAH FlLE: 400/507 April 19,2004 Dear Mr. Wilson: On behalf of the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (O.F.A.H.), our 81,000 members and 660 member clubs, I am writing to express our very serious concerns over recent reports that the Essex Region Conservation Authority (E.R.C.A.) is reviewing its hunting policies, and may in fact, move to stop the practice of hunting on conservation property. The O.F.A.H. is the largest, charitable conservation-based organization in Ontario. We are members of the Canadian Wildlife Federation, and on national issues, speak on behalf of the National Coalition of Provincial and Territorial Wildlife Federations, representing several hundred thousand members across Canada. Each year, the O.F.A.H., members and member clubs across Ontario, contribute tens of thousands of hours of volunteer service in their local communities and work on projects, including the rehabilitation of wetlands, programs to control invasive species, fish and wildlife reintroduction, the building of nesting boxes and the clean up and restocking of rivers and streams. In fact, according to Statistics Canada, over the last 15 years, hunters across Canada have contributed more than 335 million dollars to conservation projects. I would also point out that the O.F.A.H. bases its programs and policies on sound, proven science, which should be the underpinning of any discussion around the effects of hunting on other bird or wildlife populations. The suggestion that hunting on E.R.C.A. property could impact negatively on an endangered songbird should be carefully reviewed, since the bird in question is usually not indigenous to the area after early September, and therefore, not disturbed by hunters later in the fall. season. I would also respectfully suggest that any concern over the impact that hunters might have on local bird or animal populations pales in comparison to the effect that much larger numbers of hikers, birdwatchers, and campers may have on these same species, particularly during critical breeding seasons. In terms of respect for our natural resources, hunters are extremely aware and knowledgeable about the environment in which they hunt. O.F.A.H. members, and in fact, hunters across Ontario, are dedicated to safe hunting practices and the full enforcement of laws designed to ensure both public safety, and the sustainable use and conservation of wildlife. We worked in partnership with the provincial government on the introduction of mandatory Hunter Safety Education programs in the 1960' s, and the success of this program can be measured in the impeccable safety record of the over 600,000 licensed hunters in Ontario. Since the inception of Hunter Safety courses, the rate of accidents and injuries related to hunting has been reduced to zero. In addition, since the introduction of mandatory Wild Turkey Hunting Seminars in 1987, 37,000 hunters have taken the course, with only one accident being recorded. Hunting today is measurably safer than bicycling, boating, swimming, horseback riding, and most recreational field sports, including golf. Trained, licensed hunters present no risk to members of the nonhunting public, or to other hunters. The introduction of restrictions against hunting based upon poor information or a "perceived" threat to avian or wildlife populations, without substantive proof or science, are unwarranted. Any policy that seeks to prohibit hunting in a manner or in a geographical area that cannot be justified, also intrudes upon the provincial jurisdiction to manage and control wildlife populations and the hunting of wildlife. Accordingly, any such policy may be subject to judicial challenge. I would also urge the members of the E.R.C.A. to recognize that by introducing restrictions to hunting in rural areas, this may inadvertently create another public safety hazard, since it is anticipated that the local population of wildlife will increase, as will the likely number of collisions between cars and wildlife, most notably deer, resulting in more injuries, more fatalities, and increased threats to crops and livestock. Local waterfowl hunters contribute to the E.R.C.A. each year through the leasing of blinds, despite the fact that improvements to these same blinds have been sadly lacking, thereby providing the Authority with a source of funding not otherwise available. Ducks Unlimited, a respected national conservation organization, which also contributes significant monies to the E.R.C.A., recognizes that hunting is a heritage activity, as does the Province of Ontario, which passed the Heritage Hunting and Fishing Act in 2002. Before considering any proposal that recommends a curtailment of hunting on conservation properties, I would strongly suggest that substantive proof that such a measure is necessary must be presented, with due consideration given to the implications of such a proposal for the wildlife population; the ability of the M.N.R. to manage wildlife; and the threat to public safety and crop predation that may occur as a result of overpopulation. I trust that the information provided herein will assist you in any deliberations around the issue of hunting on E.R.C.A. properties, and cause you to reject any proposal to restrict hunting that is not based on fact. Yours in conservation . Greg Farrant Government Relations & Communications Manager FOR SALE!! 1988 BAYLINER TROPHY, Model 2100, with Cuddy Cabin. Has a length of 20' 8"with a 8' beam. Powered by a 1994 Mercury 200 hp. Outboard. Both boat and motor in very good/clean condition. Trailer and many extras for fishing included. Asking price $13,000.00. Call Bill Douglas @ 372-0804 for details. GUNS FOR SALE TWO CLASSIC OLDIES FROM WINCHESTER Pump Action Shotgun Winchester Model 12 12 gauge -2-3/4"chamber- full w/poly choke Would make an excellent turkey gun. Asking $200.00 Model 94 --32 Winchester Special Lever Action Rifle w /Williams peep-sights A nice little deer rifle Asking $200.00 Contact: Jack Osadzuk 376-4582
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