Question 1 rejection means Maine wants its biologists, not politics, to manage bears By Don Kleiner, David Trahan and James Cote Posted Dec. 04, 2014, at 1:14 p.m. BDN Voters in Maine sent a strong message on Nov. 4 — trust our wildlife experts and maintain all of the tools they say are necessary to maintain the state’s black bear population. That was the major theme of our campaign in opposition to Question 1. It is a theme you can expect Maine’s hunting community to promote in the months and years ahead. Our coalition believes that we have some of the most knowledgeable and honorable biologists and game wardens in the country, and we are well served to heed their advice — especially on bears. There seems to be a school of thought, however, that a political compromise should be made to weed out certain bear management practices or hunting methods, despite what Maine’s bear biologists tell us based on 40 years of research and voters told us on Election Day. That sentiment was shared by the Bangor Daily News on Nov. 11 in an editorial titled, “Maine voters and the three bear hunting methods: Not all are just right.” While those who attempt to interpret what the electorate told us on Election Day continue to reference a slim margin of victory in context of the 2004 campaign, what they don’t mention is that our campaign was outspent by over $300,000. In 2004, sportsmen outspent the proponents by nearly $700,000. And almost all of the money that we were outspent with came from one anti-hunting interest group in Washington, D.C. That level of spending by one group in this type of campaign is unprecedented anywhere in the country, and it should be alarming for any Maine voter. Comparing these two campaigns is not apples to apples. Another important distinction is that even during a midterm election, and after being outspent by over $300,000, opponents prevailed by more than 40,000 votes. Imagine if this ballot initiative was a public hearing and 40,000 more people showed up to oppose the initiative than to support it. Of course, in that case, it would be hard to imagine any policymaker being inclined to do away with any of these three methods of hunting. Perhaps most alarming about the Bangor Daily News editorial was the idea that because a certain number of people casts ballots in favor of Question 1, that the biologists at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife should factor this heavily during their 15-year species planning process for black bears. The idea is preposterous. The mere suggestion of injecting a political calculation into a biological planning process completely contradicts what Maine voters just told us — trust our biologists and keep our bear population healthy and manageable. It also undermines everything the biologists at the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife stand for. Let’s be clear. The professionals at the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife are charged with preserving, protecting and enhancing our wildlife resources. Nothing in their charge tells them to compromise those principles for political expediency. Any discussion about what hunting methods are appropriate should be based entirely on the scientific merits — and that’s what stakeholders in the species planning process should focus on next year. The most heartening aspect of the entire campaign was the resolve of the professionals at the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, in every rank, to put the resource first. The department was clear from day one that the decision to oppose Question 1 was made entirely based on what was right to maintain a healthy bear population, and nothing to do with money or politics. The Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife should continue to manage Maine’s bear population based on its 40 years of scientific research, and not the interpretation of political pundits. Maine’s hunting community looks forward to strengthening our partnership with the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and Maine’s nonhunting public in the future. We are proud of our success, thankful to our supporters, and we are happy for hunters and bears alike. Don Kleiner is the executive director of the Maine Professional Guides Association. David Trahan is the executive director of the Sportsman’s Alliance of Maine. James Cote is the executive director of the Maine Wildlife Conservation Council and was campaign manager for the No on 1 Campaign.
Posted on: Fri, 05 Dec 2014 14:00:17 +0000
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