Caribou to costly to save

[Big Grey Wolf]

Guys did any of you read article in yesterday Edm Sun. Our wise F&W people just calculated cost to build 100 sq mile pens, close cutlines etc. Claim it will cost $1billion over 40 years. It would be much cheaper to offer us trapper a $1000 bounty per wolf, PROBLEM SOLVED.

[slough shark]

Don’t be talking logic and ways of saving money, frustrating as $1000 a wolf could mean removing 1000 wolves for a million dollars, leave it to the government to spend tens of millions on studies and more expensive unproven theories when it really is quite simple

[HunterDave]

This one? Justin and Climate Barbie deciding on what to do will not be good.

NDP suspends caribou conservation plan, calls on federal government for cash infusion

The NDP suspended portions of its caribou protection plan Monday and called on the federal government to step up on the file, citing a $1-billion price tag over the next four decades.

“Alberta’s approach … and fulfilling the requirements under federal law cannot and will not come at the expense of our economy,” said Environment and Parks Minister Shannon Phillips in a letter sent to Ottawa.

The province released its draft plan on Dec. 19 to help threatened woodland caribou populations recover in 15 different ranges. Hundreds of Albertans have since voiced concerns, Phillips said, referencing public meetings in communities including Cold Lake, Fort McMurray and High Level.

In the letter to federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna, Phillips said the province needs a cash infusion “to restore habitat necessary to ensure population growth.”

Alberta so far has spent $9.2 million on caribou recovery, but restoration costs over the next 40 years are pegged at $1 billion, she stated. “Rearing facilities in our protection plan will cost in the neighbourhood of $75 million.”

Lisa Wardley, chairwoman of the Northwest Species at Risk Committee, said communities in northern Alberta feel ignored. She advocated for a detailed assessment to determine the effects of caribou range planning on local economies.

“My hamlet is within a caribou range,” Wardley said, speaking about her Zama City home about 600 km north of Grande Prairie. “There is no protected land in that range right now.”

She said communities currently have control over the land, but that would change under the proposed provincial plan.

“Predator management is a big thing, so in protected areas you can’t necessarily do that,” she said in an interview. “We have trappers that are actually creating that wildlife balance. Can they continue if it’s a protected area? We’re not sure.”

Wardley said she’s concerned the range planning would affect nearly 40 per cent of the province’s land mass and hinder forestry and energy industries. “In a nutshell, if it was in your backyard, wouldn’t you want a say?”

On Monday, the NDP kiboshed conservation plans pending the outcome of a socioeconomic plan, which means for now there will be no new parks created. But the province will still invest in other projects, such as industry-led efforts to maintain caribou populations.

Several United Conservative Party MLAs repeatedly asked about the issue during Monday’s question period.

Opposition leader Jason Kenney asked for Alberta Premier Rachel Notley to commit to examining the effects of caribou range planning on jobs.

“It goes without saying that is part of the socioeconomic assessment that the ministers have indicated to the federal government we want to see completed,” Notley responded.

http://edmontonsun.com/news/politics...0-f25c3d6b07a8

[thumper]

Our caribou are a relic ice-age species. They're taking longer to die off than mammoths, mastodons and ground sloths, but they're just as doomed. Even in totally protected areas like our mountain national parks, they've either disappeared (like in Banff National Park), or their numbers continue to drop (like in Jasper NP). We can spend billions and vent our rage about wolf killing or not wolf killing, extending their extirpation from Alberta if we wish, or just accept the inevitable.

There are many wildlife managers out there that would love to re-direct the resources spent on propping up caribou - into areas where they could really make a difference. Unfortunately, in this PC world, it's career suicide for them to speak up with those views.

[dugh]

I think, to save the caribou, we'd have to re-locate some to parks and create more areas where they are protected. Really no different than the bison, they were doomed at one point. I don't believe the caribou will survive where they are, trying to restore the habitat and leaving them where they are would be too costly.

[NCC]

Caribou don't need more parks, they need less wolves and gbears eating them. As the article stated, creating more parks will protect the predators also.

Look what happened on the island in the Great Lakes; no wolves, lots of caribou. Lots of wolves, no caribou. Open the Gbear season, give trappers the mandate or incentive to kill wolves (or poison the wolves) and the caribou numbers will recover. When there's video evidence of one g Bear killing 40 moose calves in a a single calving season, it's not hard to figure out what is happening to our ungulates. Every trapper who kills a pack of wolves can attest to the surge in ungulate numbers in that area, yet our biologists who study wildlife for a living still think we need more parks.

To give credit where it is due, Shannon Phillips has made some decisions based on reality instead of blindly following the advice given by provincial bios.

[MountainTi]

Originally Posted by thumper;3756244[COLOR="Red"

]Our caribou are a relic ice-age species. They're taking longer to die off than mammoths, mastodons and ground sloths, but they're just as doomed. Even in totally protected areas like our mountain national parks, they've either disappeared (like in Banff National Park), or their numbers continue to drop (like in Jasper NP). We can spend billions and vent our rage about wolf killing or not wolf killing, extending their extirpation from Alberta if we wish, or just accept the inevitable.[/COLOR]

There are many wildlife managers out there that would love to re-direct the resources spent on propping up caribou - into areas where they could really make a difference. Unfortunately, in this PC world, it's career suicide for them to speak up with those views.

^^^This guy get's it. Quite a few years ago, a wise old biologist from BC said the same thing...in different words.
Caribou have been in decline for a good long time, long before there was industry in these parts. They are a species on their way out. Just the way it is.

Anybody remember the caribou patrol that drove up and down hwy 40 chasing them off the road between Grande Cache and Hinton? 2 vehicles if I remember right. A full time job.
Damn they're dumb

[parfleche]

The stupidity and ignorance coming out of these laripoops mouth's is arm biting to say the least! Regarding what their plans are for the saving of the caribou, They should keep quiet as they are killing us with stress just reading their stupid plans!!

[NCC]

Originally Posted by thumper

Our caribou are a relic ice-age species. They're taking longer to die off than mammoths, mastodons and ground sloths, but they're just as doomed. Even in totally protected areas like our mountain national parks, they've either disappeared (like in Banff National Park), or their numbers continue to drop (like in Jasper NP). We can spend billions and vent our rage about wolf killing or not wolf killing, extending their extirpation from Alberta if we wish, or just accept the inevitable.

There are many wildlife managers out there that would love to re-direct the resources spent on propping up caribou - into areas where they could really make a difference. Unfortunately, in this PC world, it's career suicide for them to speak up with those views.

Haven't the anthropologists determined that early North American hunters hunted these species (mammoths and mastodons) into extinction?

[expedition]

Originally Posted by slough shark

Don’t be talking logic and ways of saving money, frustrating as $1000 a wolf could mean removing 1000 wolves for a million dollars, leave it to the government to spend tens of millions on studies and more expensive unproven theories when it really is quite simple

x2

[expedition]

I talked to guy from bc around Christmas and we argued about wolves . His argument was there is no proof wolves kill caribou. They only eat carion. WTF

[thumper]

Originally Posted by expedition

I talked to guy from bc around Christmas and we argued about wolves . His argument was there is no proof wolves kill caribou. They only eat carion. WTF

Farley Mowat tried to convince us that they only eat mice!

[-JR-]

I know the area well where they are putting up the fence.
They built a small one a few years back maybe 200 x200 yards sq.
I think they had their hands full ,just with that .
They are not easy animals to feed.


One year hey gave out moose tags to anyone that wanted them to starve out the wolfs.....So what did the wolfs eat after the moose were shot out ,
I'll give you a guess it starts with the letter C.

Then they tried to kill all the wolves... they had helicopters going and brought in many bus loads of hunter to kill them.
The next year the wolfs just cam back in .

If a wolf wants in he will just dig a hole .


When A/O first started , I wrote ...A good wolf is a dead wolf.
I was jumped on by everyone on this site. Telling me stuff like we need wolfs to keep every thing in check.
Things have sure changed

[Reeves1]

Originally Posted by thumper

Farley Mowat tried to convince us that they only eat mice!

Not many on here old enough to remember that

[sourdough doug]

Originally Posted by expedition

I talked to guy from bc around Christmas and we argued about wolves . His argument was there is no proof wolves kill caribou. They only eat carion. WTF

Where did you say this guy was from.??...lol