Hunting Sense

Hunting season got off to a tragic start in Simcoe County this last Monday when 67 year-old Marianne Schmid was killed by a gunshot wound to the stomach. Fredrick Paul Thomas, 60, has been charged with criminal negligence causing death and careless use of a firearm. Thomas is scheduled to appear in a Bradford court on Dec. 21st.

Following this unfortunate accident, there was some speculation that the Simcoe County Council may move forward earlier than planned with the banning of hunting in some tracts of Simcoe County Forests. The planned ban was adopted by the Council in June of 2006 and will be implemented in 2007. These tracts were chosen based on their close proximity to urban areas and concern over the safety of outdoor enthusiasts, other than hunters, using them.

When I asked about the public reaction to the bans today, County Forester Graeme Davis, R.P.F. answered with:

“A series of 5 public open houses were held to discuss the proposed County Forest Recreation Policy, which focused on a range of issues of which hunting was just one. Concerns expressed by the public at that time about permitting hunting in these forests were relatively minor. The most common position was that if hunting is to be permitted, the properties should be signed appropriately. Developing these signs is currently under way as a result of the policy.�?

The affected areas are mostly what are referred to as ‘controlled hunts’, which means that the weapons used during hunting are restricted to shotguns with a slug bullet instead of pellets and black powder (primitive) rifles. Unlike high powered rifles, both of these types of weapons provide a measure of safety to the nearby residences because of their limited range. Outdoor enthusiasts who may be enjoying the forest don’t benefit from this shorter range, though, as these firearms are still dangers to them. The signs Mr. Davis mentioned will make them aware of the danger until the tracts are closed next year.

Although the signs will be beneficial, there’s also the fact that the opening day of hunting season changes from year to year. This makes it difficult for non-hunters to know exactly when they should begin taking extra precautions while in the woods. A set date would help in alleviating this problem, but it’s something that’s set by the Ministry of Natural Resources and out of the hands of individual counties to decide. This is a subject that deserves some consideration.

While these actions may make the woods a safer place for outdoor enthusiasts, it is also important to note that prior to Mrs. Schmid being shot Monday, the last fatal hunting incident in Ontario was in December of 2004. While this fact doesn’t lessen the tragedy of what happened, it does show accidents like these aren’t common. It seems, for the most part, that Ontario hunters are very safety oriented when afield.

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