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OFAH FILE: 842
August 20, 2010
For Immediate Release
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MNR bungles latest regulation to prevent CWD
Changes do little to stop spread of deadly disease and retailers pay the
price
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Earlier this week, Minister of Natural Resources Linda Jeffrey signed an
order banning the possession and use of natural products containing body
parts or fluids from members of the deer family for the purposes of hunting
in Ontario. The move, along with two other regulatory changes relating to
the movement of animals and animal parts, was supposedly designed to
prevent the introduction and spread of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in
Ontario. Unfortunately, these half measures fall far short of what actions
should have been taken, and not only fail to address the problem, they
leave outdoors retailers on the cusp of hunting season with inventories of
natural deer attractants that can be sold, but no longer be used by
hunters, at least in Ontario.
CWD is a fatal degenerative brain disease that affects members of the deer
family, including moose, elk and potentially caribou. The disease has
established a significant foothold in Alberta and Saskatchewan and fifteen
U.S. states, but has yet to be discovered in Ontario. The main source for
the spread of the disease is game farms for deer and elk, the same source
of the products now banned by the Ministry. Unfortunately, the new
regulations do nothing to eliminate the primary source of the disease (game
farms), do not prohibit the sale and use of the product for uses other than
hunting, and have not taken into consideration the losses that will be
suffered by retailers. Several ministries share responsibility for keeping
CWD out of the province, including the MNR, Ontario Ministry of
Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), Ministry of Consumer Services
(MCS) and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA), but a concerted plan
of action, even among provincial ministries, is sadly lacking.
"Two years ago, the O.F.A.H. told the MNR that if they intended to ban
natural attractants, they needed to give retailers sufficient lead time to
source out alternative products, and needed to ban the sale, not just the
possession of these products if they were serious about preventing the
potential introduction of CWD to Ontario. They didn't listen, and as a
result, retailers are left holding the bag. The new regulations are nothing
more than a band aid that achieves little of real value in terms of
eradicating the threat posed by the disease," said Dr. Terry Quinney,
Provincial Manager of Fish and Wildlife Services.
"By allowing the
continued sale of these products for uses other than hunting, they have not
stopped the products from potentially introducing the disease into the
wild, and have placed retailers in an awkward, and potentially legally
tenuous position. In fact, our legal counsel tells us that by selling the
product, retailers may leave themselves open to charges under Section 77 of
the Provincial Offenses Act. Only by banning the sale and use of the
product by all potential users, not just hunters, restricting the movement
of animals and animal parts from outside the province, and banning deer and
elk farms, the major source for the transmission of the disease, with
compensation to the owners, would the government come close to achieving
their stated goal. The MNR has failed Ontario's wildlife."
Dr. Quinney also noted the irony that the MNR has not banned the sale and
use of these attractants by Ontario hunters in other jurisdictions. "It's
illogical that the MNR would ban the use of a product in Ontario, but not
prevent the sale of the product to be used in other provinces. You have to
question why the government, with its focus on 'biodiversity,' refuses to
ban deer and elk farms, and is instead seemingly content to introduce
regulations that target hunters and outdoors retailers, without addressing
the major source of the disease itself."
With over 100,000 members, subscribers and supporters, and 670 member
clubs, the O.F.A.H. is the largest nonprofit, charitable, fishing, hunting
and conservation-based organization in Ontario, and the voice of anglers
and hunters. For more information, visit
www.ofah.org.
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Contact
Dr. Terry Quinney PhD
Provincial Manager of Fish and Wildlife Services
705-748-6324 ext 242
Greg Farrant
Manager, Government Affairs and Policy
705-748-6324 ext 236
