I-169: Oppression versus sound science

We are at a very perilous crossroads with regard to the future of proven and sustained wildlife management, our rural Montana heritage, and multiple public land-use traditions.

Animal rights activists want to eliminate trapping, and the truth is they are abusing the ballot box to accomplish this emotional and biologically deficient endeavor.

Trappers have a deep appreciation for wildlife and have always been respectful of our natural and renewable resources. Trappers work tirelessly with wildlife conservation professionals, fish and game agencies, and other user groups to avoid conflicts where they arise or may exist, rather than attempt to exclude any use or activity by others.

Montana is a very large state with multiple opportunities for all forms of recreation, including sustainable harvest of individual animals by the use of trapping.

The history of Montana is steeped in the beneficial use of our natural resources, including trapping, and throughout the years, trappers have implemented best management practices and use the very same equipment wildlife agencies use when they trap animals for research purposes.

Many of our wildlife populations, including deer, moose, antelope and even sage grouse, are under constant threat of mortality from an abundance of predators. Trapping is a significant, effective and practical tool used to manage predators to ensure other wildlife numbers do not decline.

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks utilizes sound science for resource management and recognizes trapping to be biologically sustainable. In fact, so do many professional wildlife authorities, such as the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and The Wildlife Society, North America’s association of wildlife scientists.

As Montanans, we must protect our rights to public land use and guard against those who wish to eliminate our way of life just because they don’t agree with what we do. The long-standing tradition of trapping lives large across our treasured state. I urge you to reject Initiative 169 and ponder this question — what outdoor activity prohibition is next on the animal rights activists agenda?

Keith Kubista is president of Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife.