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BC Conservation Officer Service
Access Management Compliance and Enforcement Program (AMCEP) October/November Report Compiled by Conservation Officer Patricia Burley October-November 30, 2017
Grave Prairie Campsite October 2017
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Introduction
The Conservation Officer Service is happy to announce that the Access Management Compliance and Enforcement Program (AMCEP) was renewed for another 5 years effective May 2017. The AMCEP was initiated in 2009. Since 2009 the AMCEP has focused primarily on the Access Management Areas (AMA’s) within the Regional District of East Kootenay’s (RDEK) Electoral Area A from May 15 to November 15. Currently the AMCEP joint partnership, with the Conservation Officer Service, is the only position of its kind in British Columbia. The Elk Valley alone has 14 Access Management Areas, BC Recreation Sites and Trails permitted non-motorized trails and a number of Motor Vehicles for Hunting Closed Areas (formally known as VAHCs). Thank you to the RDEK, Columbia Basin Trust, other stakeholder groups and the Communities of Fernie, Sparwood and Elkford for supporting this valued program and contributing to its success. Monthly reports are completed by CO Burley, who has been the CO Access Guardian since 2012. The October/November AMCEP Report is the fifth and final monthly report for the 6 month period for 2017 prepared by Conservation Officer (CO) Burley. The Final 2017 AMCEP Report will be completed in January 2018. In early October Teck spoke to CO Burley regarding the North Chauncey Road in Chauncey Todhunter AMA. CO Burley had received a number of complaints of vehicles hunting on the North Chauncey Road which is a year round non-motorized road (Figure 1). There is a yellow AMA sign on a stump as you enter this road, but the noncompliance is still high. As Teck owns this road and wanted to support the AMA, they had equipment deactivate it with a large ditch so ATVs or trucks cannot access it. Foot and horse traffic are still welcome. Thank you to Teck for helping with the deactivating of this AMA closed road. There have been no further complaints on this road since the work was completed.
Figure 1: North Chauncey Road in the Chauncey Todhunter AMA.
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On October 6th Ecosystem Biologist Allana Oestreich and CO Burley patrolled a number of Elk Valley AMA’s to track where signage was and where good locations would be to post new Kiosk signs/maps. By mid-October Oestreich had organised contractors to build and post Kiosks in every Electoral Area A AMA that needed new ones. The maps still need to be made but will be posted on the Kiosks by 2018. This will be a great tool for our AMA’s as it will educate people when they arrive into the non-motorized boundaries. One area that CO Burley wanted to show Oestreich was the most northern tip of the Chauncey Todhunter AMA. Figure 2 shows a green dotted line that indicates the road being open year round. The road is called Kilmarnock. When they drove this road they tracked it in yellow (figure 2). The public should note that the green road does not go anywhere as the active mine has expended into this area and is gated for safety reason. The yellow road that some people have driven on who think it is an open road are incorrect and breaking a law under the Wildlife Act. This area is currently being reviewed and will be updated for next year.
Figure 2: Chauncey Todhunter AMA; Kilmarnock Road in green. All Fernie CO’s patrolled the Grave Prairie AMA throughout October and November. It is impressive with the amount of improvement this AMA has had over the last 5 years. With the help of Teck managing their land, the public making reports to RAPP or CO Burley, strong enforcement efforts by the CO’s and more signage being posted it is evident that the sensitive grassland areas are being avoided like they should be by motor vehicles. This AMA is still one of the busiest in the area with recreationists (ATV’s, hunters, anglers, and campers). CO Burley is happy to see that the road closures are becoming more excepted and respected. On October 6th CO Burley conducted a Road Block on Grave Prairie Road. It was so busy with hunters that morning that she could not keep up with the traffic coming in and out of the area. One firearm was seized and advice was provided to another hunter for a minor violation. She only checked
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one white tail deer that was harvested, but she was able to check over 30 hunters. The hunting system is online so it was a learning experience for CO Burley as well as the hunters. Hunters have to present their tags and gov’t photo identification as part of the new regulations. All hunters who have rifles with them have to have their Possession Acquisition License (PAL).
Figure 3: Overlooking Grave Prairie AMA on a beautiful October day.
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Figure 4: Grave Prairie AMA. During early October there were reports from the public that there was some illegal hunting occurring in the Flathead region. On October 7-8th CO Gordon and Corbett patrolled most of the Flathead area for hunters. They checked large and small hunting camps. There were a number of animals that were harvested at these camps, but there were no violations that they could find. During their patrols they noted that there were ATV tracks on some of the non-motorized roads. The COs relies on the public’s assistance to help report illegal activity that they may see, especially in areas that are so remote and in the backcountry. A member of the public did just that for the Southern Flathead Area on October 21st. A complainant contacted CO Burley to inform her that there were hunters on an ATV on a closed road that he had hiked in to hunt. CO Burley responded the next morning. This was during the moose season so the Lodgepole Forest Service Road (FSR) was busy. CO Burley decided to conduct a road block and checked every hunter going in and coming out of the Flathead. She checked 20 hunters and two harvested moose. She checked two hunters that had an ATV which matched the description from the complainant. She confronted the hunters who admitted their activity on a non-motorized road. She issued them an AMA violation ticket for $230. If the other hunter had never forwarded the information to CO Burley she would never have known the difference when she checked the hunters the next day. Thank you to the ethical recreationist out there who stand up for conservation and report violations! While CO Burley was on her way home from the Flathead she checked what she thought would be her last hunter of the day in Morrissey. There were four adults in the truck that were not hunting but were all intoxicated and drinking in the truck. CO Burley called RCMP for assistance. CO Burley issued a violation
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ticket for liquor in a motor vehicle $230. The driver of the truck completed a breathalyser test, failed it, had his licence suspended for 3 months, his truck towed and sent to the compound.
Figure 5 and 6: Lodge pole Creek in Wigwam Flats AMA.
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Figure 7 and 8: Wigwam Flats AMA: Windfall Creek which is north of the Flathead Valley. CO Burley was invited to the Koocanusa Strategy Meeting on October 19th with her Sargent Denny Chretien. Both COs did a presentation and were able to educate the committee members on what authorities the COs have and what kind of work they do. The Koocanusa area is under review to help with the management of the visitors, ideas on how conserve the area and the use of enforcement. CO Burleys presentation was an example of how the Access Management Compliance and Enforcement Program came into effect and how all user groups worked together to make the program a success. This is an ongoing project that will have some updates in spring of 2018. On October 25th CO Burley and CO Gordon patrolled the Chauncey Todhunter AMA for Sheep hunters. A sheep file had come to their attention the previous day regarding a hunter who pushed the boundary with a ram. The hunter was contacted and the COs continued with their investigation and patrol. They flew the area in a helicopter on October 27th, the day after the sheep season closed. They walked the ridge line of a mountain and did not find any animal parts (figure 9). The hunter was provided advice and education as the file was concluded as unfounded. They checked a large number of moose, deer and sheep hunters. Two tickets were issued to two separate groups of hunters for not having the sex attached to the carcass of their harvest animal (moose and sheep). In the hunting synopsis on page 20 it states the requirements for possession and transportation. There is a misprint where it states that the portion of the head which bears the antlers, OR either a sex organ. This is a misprint where it should say AND instead of OR. The new synopsis will be out next year and will be corrected.
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Figure 9: Chauncey Todhunter AMA: Dry Creek Ridge. Sheep Mountain AMA, just south of Elko, is a very busy AMA during late October and most of November with hunters looking for deer (figure 10). Many hunters hike in the area, but many knowingly break the law by driving through the sensitive grass lands to cover more ground while they are looking for animals. This is very frustrating for the hunters who hike. The COs patrolled the area approximately 12 times during October and November. CO Gordon issued an AMA violation ticket to a hunter driving through the farm fields. He also checked an e-biker in the closure that he provided advice and education to. A large number of hunters were checked, but no other violations had taken place while the COs were there. CO Burley checked empty camps that had deer hides, gut piles and garbage left at the site (figure 11). People come from all across BC to hunt and camp here. It is disrespectful to our area and the other people that want to camp at these locations to deal with the left over mess. CO Burley will start taking photos of vehicle plates parked at these campsites to put the responsibility back on them if their camp is not clean. Unfortunately a number of mule deer were found shot and left in the Sheep Mountain area. This is not an uncommon occurrence, but is preventable or can be dealt with in a way so that the animal is not wasted. When the mule deer season is on (ends Nov 10) it is a 4 point requirement. Some hunters shoot 3 point mule deer by accident and walk away from them, when they should be reporting themselves to the COs. Other mule deer were left because hunters may think they are white tail and realize after they shoot it. This is wastage and illegal! This year the COs have responded to at least 15 shot and left elk. There are most likely more out in the bush that have not been found and report. The most recent one is from November 30th that was reported to CO Burley (figure 13). This was done on the last day of rifle season, North of Sparwood on private cultivated land. It is suspected that it took
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place at night and was shot from the road. It is an open investigation, but CO Burley is asking for the public’s assistance in locating the hunter. http://www.thedrivefm.ca/2017/12/01/cos-investigating-illegal-elk-hunting-near-sparwood/
Figure 10: Sheep Mountain AMA, November 2017.
Figure 11: Sheep Mountain AMA, garbage left at camp site.
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Figure 12-13: Two of many shot and left elk within the Elk Valley. CO Burley assisted in a file regarding a black bear cub from this year that was orphaned near Caithness Trailer Park (figure 14-15). The cub was reported to CO Burley where the complainant thought the bear was orphaned because the sow was shot during the hunting season (it is illegal to shoot a bear that has cubs). After a week of sightings and the sow not anywhere in sight, CO Burley contacted volunteer Wildlife Rehabber Colleen Bailey. Bailey is permitted through the government to catch and obtain wildlife. She immediately set a trap and was able to catch the cub within 2 days. The cub was skinny and malnourished. With all the volunteers help the cub was successfully transported to Smithers to the Northern Lights Wildlife Rehab where he will be taken care of until next year when strong enough for release back to the wild in his home range. CO Burley has an open investigation for the sow that was shot and killed.
Figure 14-15: Orphaned black bear cub.
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CO Burley and CO Gordon responded to a deer in Elkford that had an arrow through its head. CO Gordon has an open investigation regarding this incident. The COs were able to successfully tranquilize the mule deer doe and remove the arrow safety from her head. She will have a sore ear but no long term effects. It is suspected that someone shot at the deer with their bow within the District of Elkford. http://www.thedrivefm.ca/2017/11/09/elkford-deer-found-with-arrow-in-head/
Figure 16: Mule deer doe in Elkford with an arrow in its head. The arrow was removed successfully.
Figure 17: Galton Range AMA, Letcher Road.
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Figure 18: New 2017 Outdoor Access Guide. Another revamped OAG will be created in 2018.
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Statistics
Figure 19: Current Summary of total time spent in the field up to November 30, 2017.
Figure 20: Current Summary of statistics up to November 30, 2017. The filtered numbers are for the month of October/November.
Figure 21: Current Summary of total outreach provided to the public up to November 30, 2017.
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It should be noted that Officer Presence is calculated as the time Officer(s) were physically present in an AMA, it does not account for travel. People that are educated are defined as COS discussing specific AMA facts and requirements for which the person in question was previously unaware. It should be noted that the Access Guardian Program and general AMA facts are discussed with more than 80% of contacts.
Figure 22: Total summary from the AMCEP 2011-2015, from the first completed 5 year contract. Summary The 2017 AMCEP is concluded, but CO Burley will continue to spend time on the AMCEP by completing the Final AMCEP Report by January 2018. CO Burley will continue to meet with the local clubs and committee, such as the snowmobile clubs in Fernie, Sparwood and Elkford as there has been recent updates to the AMAs in the area regarding snowmobile activity. AMA patrols and investigations will be added to the excel spreadsheet as it all relates to the 6 month program. AMA Report All Poachers and Polluters (RAPP) calls continue to be reported to CO Burley and the other CO’s for follow up. CO Burley’s time was also spent following up with Human Wildlife Occurrence Reports (HWOR) when other CO’s were not available. Officer time is taken up in the office to deal with any HWORs, tickets, project reports or non-compliance investigations (photocopying, scanning etc.). All CO’s time has been added to the 2017 Excel spreadsheet when working on investigations, the Outdoor Access Guide, AMA Reports and field time. The people in the East Kootenay’s have such a great opportunity to explore the beauty of the Rockies which provides a variety of recreational experiences. CO Burley is enjoying making contact with all these user groups and will continue to build a better understanding to the public of the laws and regulations that are built around them.
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If you have any questions or concerns about the October/November AMA Report or questions for CO Burley, she can be contacted at: RAPP 1-877-952-7277 Desk 250-423-4264 [email protected] 1621A 10th Avenue P.O Box 2877, Fernie, BC, V0B1M0 The Conservation Officer Service is a public safety provider focused on natural resource law enforcement and human wildlife conflicts prevention and response. Our Vision: To be a progressive and respected leader in environmental compliance and enforcement, shared stewardship and public safety. The Conservation Officer Service Motto is: Integrity, Service and Protection Please see the attached Excel 2017 Stats for more detail of the Access Guardian’s patrols and outreach efforts from March to November 30, 2017. Maps To reduce document size, AMA maps have not been included in this report. If required maps of individual AMAs are available on the Ministry of Environment website (www.env.gov.bc.ca/kootenay/eco/accessmaps.htm). The maps available from the MOE website are in colour and contain much greater detail. The 2011-2017 monthly AMCEP reports and yearly summaries are now available online for the public to read. They can be viewed on the following website: http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/kootenay/eco/accessmaps.htm
