Appeal: Ban the sale of wildmeat

ALTHOUGH, the hunting season is officially open, the Papa Bois Conservation is asking that there be a ban on the sale of all wildmeat.

Marc De Verteuil, founder and director of the Conservation said commercial hunting was not sustainable and the wildmeat trade added to illegal activity.

De Verteuil said it was no surprise that the ban was lifted after two years but the moratorium was to be used for a fully comprehensive wildlife survey.

“I am not opposed to hunting but I am opposed to hunting without limits, without management, " he said.

Agriculture Minister Clarence Rambharat had said on average 18,000 to 20,000 hunting licenses are bought annually.

De Verteuil said: "The results of that survey were to be used to formulation of a scientifically managed hunt. That survey is not complete, so there can be no scientifically managed hunt. It is irresponsible to open the hunting season without knowing the status of wildlife. We live in an island that is subject to heavy development. Wildlife constantly loses ground to quarries, agriculture and housing. Additionally there is wide scale poaching."

He said: "The Minister (of Agriculture) said that some hunter household earn $60,000 per year from hunting. One thing we heard from hunting consultations is that there is a widespread consensus that commercial hunting is unsustainable. I would like to hear the minister ban the sale of wild meat.

"How do these commercial hunters support themselves during the seven months of the year that hunting is closed?" he asked.

De Verteuil added: "The reality is that a lot of wild meat gets imported from Venezuela, illegally. Allowing commercial hunting allows this cross border trade to flourish. Venezuelan wildlife can be sold openly in Trinidad and Tobago under the guise of being locally caught. The wildmeat trade is linked to drug smuggling, weapons smuggling and human trafficking. They all use the same boats so we really do not want to encourage this illegal activity."

He said: " It is unsustainable that in the year 2015 a small island state like Trinidad and Tobago has a near unregulated hunting season with little enforcement. We are blessed with abundant biodiversity but if we continue to take a laid back approach to its management we will lose it.”

Taken from Trinidad Express