The newly formed Big Game Management Advisory Committee is coming to North Bay on May 23.
It's one of six stops across the province.
Last fall, the government announced a review of moose management in Ontario. Today John Yakabuski, Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry, announced the Big Game Management Advisory Committee which will advise on improvements to how the province manages moose and other big game including deer, elk, and black bear.
“We have heard concerns from hunters that the current approach, specifically the moose tag draw system, is not working for hunters or ensuring sustainability,” said Yakabuski.
See: Big game advisory committee coming
The committee consists of members with diverse knowledge and experience in moose management and quota review, moose hunting, tourist outfitter operations, and previous experience on wildlife advisory committees. The initial task of the committee will be to develop recommendations on moose management, with a focus on how quotas are developed, and how tags are allocated to hunters through the draw.
Hunting is worth over $431 million in Ontario.
The 2019 moose tag draw opens today. Results will be made available in August on the Ministry’s new Moose in Ontario webpage.
The 2019 elk tag draw also opens today. Results will be available on August 1.
The 2019 black bear licences became available on March 1 and second tags became available April 15.
The Committee will be hosting six listening sessions open to the public throughout May:
St. Thomas – May 21, 2019
Peterborough – May 22, 2019
North Bay – May 23, 2019
Sault Ste. Marie – May 28, 2019
Thunder Bay – May 29, 2019
Dryden – May 30, 2019
Interested hunters, members of the public and organizations are invited to attend one of these sessions to share their perspectives to develop a path forward. More details on the location of these listening sessions will be posted at Ontario.ca/moose.
“Over the next two years, our goal is to make moose hunting fairer, more accessible and simpler for hunters. Work is already underway to make immediate improvements to online resources so that we can better communicate with hunters,” said Yakabuski.
