I was sorry to read about the negative interaction and feelings that some visitors to the Cowichan Bay estuary have experienced. Ethical hunters never like to be involved in these situations either. That’s why I sent a letter to council in 2019 on behalf of the Valley Fish and Game Club on the importance of various hunting opportunities in North Cowichan.
There is signage posted, informing the public that lawful hunting is permitted, so people can choose to enjoy many of the other beaches and trails in the valley where hunting is not permitted.
I will personally ensure there is adequate signage in place.
I am going to try and alleviate some of the safety concerns expressed in the letter.
Waterfowl hunters use shotguns, not rifles. The use of rifles is prohibited in North Cowichan. A single bullet shot from a rifle is dangerous up to several kilometers. However, shotguns shoot a cluster of smaller, light weight pellets that quickly lose their energy and fall to the ground within 50 to 200 metres depending on the shotgun gauge, shot load and angle the gun is at when fired.
Why is managing waterfowl populations so important?
Many people are aware of the damage geese and other waterfowl do to farmers’ crops throughout the year, especially in the planting stage when the little seedlings are pulled out by the thousands every day.
Some people are aware of the problems on the sports fields, beaches and waterways because of the high coliform counts from geese feces, which often contributes to fish mortality, like what occurred in Somenos lake last summer.
The blue-green algae bloom called cyanobacteria can also make people sick and kill your pets.
The future of our water quality in our fresh water systems is in danger.
What most people are not aware of is the damage the over population of Canada geese is doing to the riparian zones of all the rivers on the east coast of Vancouver Island, including the Chemainus, Cowichan and Kokisilah. Which is part of the critical habitat necessary for salmon fry, and other fish and bird species to thrive.
Prior to the 1970s, there was only sparse populations of the smaller Canada geese (cacklers) that nested on Vancouver Island. In the 1970s, the big interior Canada geese were introduced, which now make up the abundant flocks that live on Vancouver Island year-round. Geese nest where they were born, so the problem is going to get worse.
The river deltas which evolved with sparse geese populations now have huge year-round flocks over grazing this invaluable habitat, especially the grasses in the tidal water the fry use to hide from everything that is preying upon them.
Many people also don’t realize that some duck species actually feed on minnows of various fish species, including salmonoids.
There has been ongoing geese culls for many years on Vancouver Island. Unfortunately the meat must be left to spoil as it is illegal to use the meat from culled geese, unless First Nations are involved.
The riparian zones of these river deltas need to be managed to help ensure our salmon stocks stay healthy as they are the life blood of the West Coast and feed so many other fish, birds, animals and people. As well as the endangered southern resident killer whale population which relies on salmon as their primary food source.
Salmon are sacred to First Nations, their culture and history and so are these ecosystems.
Salmon also contribute huge socioeconomic benefits from the 275,000 licensed saltwater anglers, and the commercial fishery.
With human population growth, managing waterfowl will help our dairy and other island farmers grow enough food to feed us all, so we won’t have to depend on the United States as much.
We should be encouraging more hunters to participate in waterfowl hunting everywhere on Vancouver Island to help with the conservation of these critical ecosystems with no cost to taxpayers.
All citizens need to work together to ensure the estuaries are protected, managed and enhanced so they can be enjoyed by all user groups now and forever.
Bill Swain
Duncan
Director for BCWF
