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The California Dept. of Fish & Game (CDF&G) has submitted proposals to the Governor’s appointed Game Commission that allow more bears to be harassed, left to suffer for longer periods, and killed. While the CDF&G repeats in their proposed regulatory changes that their interest is to “maintain the State’s black bear population in a healthy and viable condition for the enjoyment and use of all Californians,” it is clear the state is catering to one interest group alone, and that is sports hunters.  Please read below for more background information.

What You Can Do TODAY Or No Later Than Tomorrow – Friday, March 13, before 5:00 pm, PST:

1) Contact the California Fish & Game Commission.  Urge the Commission to REJECT THE FISH & GAME PROPOSALS INVOLVING BLACK BEARS based on the background information below:

director@dfg.ca.gov, jcarlson@dfg.ca.gov, fgc@.ca.gov

- cc your email to the Commission to the CA Dept. of Fish & Game:

Dr. Eric Loft

Chief, Department of Fish and Game

Email: eloft@dfg.ca.gov

2) Please also attend the upcoming Fish & Game Commission meeting where the CDF&G proposals to kill more bears will be discussed.
When: Thursday, April 8th at 8:30 a.m.

Where: Beach Resort Monterey, 2600 Sand Dunes Dr., Monterey, Calif.

Background Information:

In 2009, the Commission allowed 1,700 black bears to be legally killed. When 1,700 bears are reported killed, the season closes. Or if the end of season arrives and 1,700 bears haven’t been killed, the season closes anyway. The CDF&G complains that it costs too much to notify hunters of an early closure and is pushing to allow an unlimited number of black bears to be killed up until the end of the season instead. While IDA does not support the lethal removal of black bears whatsoever, CDF&G proposing to kill more bears to save money instead of updating their notification system is simply a stone-age mentality.

The CDF&G has also proposed to allow the use of GPS equipment and tree switches (they notify the hunter when and where a bear has taken refuge in a tree). They state that use of these would allow for the increased care and monitoring of dogs. This is completely absurd because if a bear was in a tree, the dogs would be safely below. In actuality, the use of GPS equipment and tree switches would assure that more bears would be killed because so long as dogs were equipped with these tracking devices and trailing bears, bears wouldn’t have a chance to ever get away.

CDF&G also wants to expand training grounds where dogs can practice on live bears.  While the bears aren’t supposed to be shot by hunters during these exercises, they would still be placed under considerable stress by either running to get away or fighting a pack of dogs who don’t adhere to all the commands yet. Opening up greater area for dogs to train translates into more space for dogs to harass and molest black bear cubs and other non-target species.

Black bear poaching is also another major concern in California. CDF&G also wants to expand the land where black bears can be legally hunted. By doing so, this welcomes poachers to greater area in which to kill bears. The legalization of GPS equipment and tree switches would also help poachers claim more bears lives and fuel the black market for their gall bladders and paws.

The use of dogs to track bears is a losing situation for many dogs as well. This should be outlawed. It is common for bears to injure and/or kill entire packs of dogs. Sows with cubs are known to be extremely dangerous and are illegal to take, yet dogs continue to pursue them. In one case, a female with three cubs fought with dogs for over 10 minutes before the hunter called his dogs off because they were getting hurt. Two weeks later, the same sow was pursued again and fought with the dogs before that hunter called them off too.  Using dogs is cruel to both bears and dogs.

For more information, please contact Melissa@idausa.org

IDA congratulates The Cove filmmaking crew including Director Louis Psihoyos, Executive Producer Jim Clark, Producer Fisher Stevens, and the Oceanic Preservation Society for creating a winning documentary about the cruel capture, slaughter and consumption of dolphins in Japan.

This is an incredible opportunity to maximize the Save Japan Dolphins Coalition’s (SJDC) efforts to stop the slaughter and urge Ms. Mizuho Fukushima, Japan’s new Minister of State for Consumer Affairs and Food Safety to make public the health risks associated with eating dolphin meat and institute a ban on it’s sale without delay.

With The Cove set to be released in Japan this year, the primary goal of the SJDC will be to use the film as a medium to convince the Japanese public to oppose the cruel hunt and sale of dolphin meat throughout their country. So far, only 600 out of 126,000 million people in Japan have seen the film and those who did were completely outraged.

Our aim is to prevent the Japanese government from issuing 23,000 permits this fall and with the likelihood that dolphins will continue to be tainted with mercury and other harmful chemicals in the future, an end to the dolphin hunt once and for all.

Please join marine mammal supporters, IDA, and the rest of the Save Japan Dolphins Coalition to see whether The Cove wins Best Documentary. You can check TV listings for your local channel or watch the Oscars live online at www.livestream.com/academyawards . The presentations will begin Sunday, March 7th, at 8 P.M/EST.

We couldn’t buy better exposure for our campaign to stop the slaughter, consumption, and live capture of dolphins in Japan. A billion people, including media outlets around the world, are slated to tune into the event that will undoubtedly create a surge of pressure directed at the Japan Fisheries Agency to stop allowing dolphins to be slaughtered, and their mercury-laden meat to be eaten by Japanese citizens.

We are so thrilled that The Cove will be released this year in Japan, because combined with the exposure through the Oscars, the Japanese government will no longer be able hide the issues behind media blackouts.

Whether The Cove wins Best Documentary or not, this is a critical victory for getting the information to the Japanese public!

Thanks to your letters to the European Parliament concerning  the seal hunt in Canada last year, the European Union (EU) responded with a  landslide vote to prohibit the sale of seal based products.  The great  news is it goes into effective this year!  With that measure in place, we  must now continue our focus on flooding Canadian Ambassadors or High  Commissioners with letters supporting the Harb Bill, which would end the  seal hunt in Canada.  The Canadian government must continue to hear  how much we still want the seal hunt to end.  In order to help push this  bill along, we need to make a concerted effort to educate others to take  similar action as well.

We have the unique opportunity to maximize our  efforts this year as there are other significant factors helping to reduce  overall incentives for sealers to kill.  The price for pelts last year  was terrible ($14/ each) and proved to be reason enough for many sealers to  stay home.  Ice conditions were also poor and provided less than optimal  conditions necessary for sealers to run around beating seals.  Under  similar circumstances this year, if sealers are really interested in the hunt,  they will have to spend more money on fuel to travel further north in order to  find more seals and suitable conditions to slaughtering them.  On top of  those factors to consider, they also now have to contend with an EU ban on  seal products, so there aren’t going to be too many buyers for seal skins.

This year, ice conditions are reportedly lower than they  have been in decades.  While this will deter many sealers from going out  to kill animals, poor ice conditions also have a negative impact on seal  populations.  Harp seals require compacted ice in order to give birth and  nurse their young.  Without ice in their normal birthing range, seals  have to travel farther north to find suitable habitat or give birth on beaches  that can be easily accessible by man.  Others may not have time or the  physical capacity to make an extended journey and will be forced to give birth  underwater where the pups will die.

The majority of Canadians are in  favor of the seal hunt ending, as are so many others compassionate  people around the world. The Canadian government must continue to  receive pressure both from within Canada as well as the international  community if the hunt in Canada is ever to end permanently.

For  more information on how you can help, please go to:  http://www.idausa.org/marine_mammals.html

IDA is delighted to report The Cove is now an official runner for an Oscar award for Best Documentary!  As a result, we can expect the next month leading up to, and including, the March 7th Oscar presentations to expose billions of people around the world to the Save Japan Dolphin Coalition’s passionate work to stopping the cruel capture, slaughter, and consumption of dolphins in Japan. The global spotlight on The Cove will also bring necessary pressure on the Japan Fisheries Agency to make public the calamitous health risks, including mercury poisoning, associated with eating dolphin meat. This is especially true for residents in Taiji, the small fishing village where the documentary is based, and the focus of our greatest efforts to ending the slaughter.  University of Hokkaido Professor Tetsuya Endo just revealed the alarming results of a study that conclude residents in Taiji have 10 times higher mercury levels than average Japanese citizens.

The government in Japan will not be able to shield the fact that it has been allowing the poisoning of Japanese people who readily eat contaminated dolphin meat to occur. Moreover, it will no longer be able to cover up the barbaric dolphin slaughter with routine media blackouts on the issue. We hope to use the momentum of the Oscar Award nomination and potential victory to enlighten the public in Japan, so the hunting and consumption of mercury-contaminated dolphins will end, once and for all.

Special thanks to The Cove filmmaking crew, including Director Louis Psihoyos, Executive Producer Jim Clark, Producer Fisher Stevens, and the Oceanic Preservation Society for creating a winning documentary!