Tundra Swan
Well-Known Member
798 Highway 59
Port Rowan, Ontario
N0E 1M0
September 01, 2014
Re: Association of Tundra Swan Hunters
Dear Fellow Waterfowlers:
I would like to start a small informal association of waterfowlers who are interested in having a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season implemented in Canada.
This association may include waterfowlers who already hunt Tundra Swans in the United States, waterfowlers who would like to hunt Tundra Swans in the United States and waterfowlers who would like to be able to hunt Tundra Swans in Canada as provided for within The Management Plan for the Eastern Population of Tundra Swans. Although there would be no charge for a membership in this association there would certainly be benefits in being a member ... more on this later.
I first asked Mr. J. Sullivan (Enforcement Officer, CWS) at the Toronto Hunting Show about 20 years ago about the possibility of a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season in Canada like they currently had in the United States and he said that it would depend upon the politicians since a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season was definitely sustainable ... way back then in the early 1990s.
I patiently waited year after year hoping that the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) might evenually take the initiative with this idea but this was not to be. I finally decided in January of 2010 that someone had to take the first step with this idea. As I had already met with Dr. S. Petrie (Executive Director, LPW) regarding my participation in the satellite tracking program of scaup I requested an opportunity to discuss the possibility of a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season with him. Although he was very generous with his time to meet with me to discuss my proposal for a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season he informed me that he would not support such a proposal. However Dr. S. Petrie did suggest that I consider presenting other proposals that he would support (as the OFAH waterfowl representative) and he provided me with the documentation that I would need to prepare these proposals ... you now know about some of these other proposals.
The late Dr. D. Ankney (Chairperson of the Scientific Advisory Committee, LPW) however supported me and he provided me with The Management Plan for the Eastern Population of Tundra Swans so that I could prepare my proposal. Mr. J. Hughes (Head of Population Management, CWS) told me in September of 2010 (just prior to the submission of my Tundra Swan proposal) that "we will never have a Tundra Swan season until someone like you asks for one" and then told me that he was looking forward to receiving my proposal.
The rest is history as my Proposal for a Tundra Swan Recreational Harvest in the Province of Ontario was discussed at the Ontario Waterfowl Advisory Committee (OWAC) in November of 2010 without support for it being established at that time. However several waterfowlers then submitted individual letters of support for my Tundra Swan proposal to Mr. J. Hughes after reading my Long Point Waterfowlers' Association (LPWA) "waterfowl" threads and my Hunt Ontario "waterfowl" threads that included additional supporting documenation for my Tundra Swan proposal. A decision was subsequently made by the CWS in April of 2011 to conduct a Tundra Swan Season Assessment (see my separate thread on this topic) and I made a presentation to the LPWA membership at our AGM in the spring of 2011 that included a short survey. The short survey was completed and returned by 20% of the LPWA membership and definitely demonstrated a level of support for a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season in Ontario.
The CWS Tundra Swan Season Assessment was completed in 2013 and supported a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season in the provinces of Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan with provisions for the Province of Quebec (currently not included within the official management plan) to participate in this Canadian harvest.
What is needed now is for waterfowlers who are interested in a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season to support this CWS Tundra Swan Season Assessment and insist that limited (tag only)Tundra Swan seasons are implemented in the appropriate areas of Canada as indicated within this assessment.
I realize that not every waterfowler in Canada will be interested in hunting Tundra Swans ... in fact ... only about 10,000 waterfowlers out of approxiamately 970,000 waterfowlers in the United States will hunt Tundra Swans from the eastern and western populations combined in any given year. I believe however that Canadian waterfowlers should have the option to hunt Tundra Swans without having to travel to the United States to hunt them.
Consequently I have pledged a $10,000.00 grant to help finance the CWS implementation of a Tundra Swan season in the Province of Ontario and a $4,000.00 annual grant for twenty (20) years to monitor the Tundra Swan harvest in the Province of Ontario. Furthermore I have also pledged to contribute another two (2) $5,000.00 grants for the implementation of Tundra Swan seasons in the Provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
This represents a total personal commitment of $100,000.00 to the CWS to implement Tundra Swan seasons in Canada.
I will have generated (earned) sufficient funds within The Dr. Jerome Katchin Waterfowl Foundation by the end of 2014 to be able to provide the CWS with the first $10,000.00 grant and will generate (earn) sufficient funds in subsequent years to be able to provide the CWS with the $4,000.00 annual grant for the next twenty (20) years. The remaining two (2) $5,000.00 grants will be available to the CWS as sufficient funds are generated (earned) by the additional capital being contributed to my charitable foundation between December of 2014 and December of 2019.
Consequently there will be an additional $21,000.00 (less the $10,000.00 for Manitoba and Saskatchewan if required) that will become available between the end of 2015 and the end of 2020 plus $6,000.00 annually thereafter for other waterfowl organizations whose members support this initiative.
The Tundra Swan tags in the United States currently cost $10.00 each. I have previously suggested a $20.00 fee for each Tundra Swan tag in my 2011 survey and the vast majority of respondents agreed that $20.00 (similar to the Wild Turkey tag) was reasonable. This could bring in nearly $80,000.00 per year in tag sales for the CWS to fund the program (since we are entitled to 41% of the 9600 tags available each year for just the eastern population) in addition to my $10,000.00 grant to implement the season and the annual $4,000.00 grant to monitor the harvest.
Furthermore I have pledged to reimburse 100 waterfowlers for their Tundra Swan tag (maximum of $20.00) if they support this proposal. So I have in essence "guaranteed" the CWS that they will sell at least 101 Tundra Swan tags (as I will buy one for myself) if they implement a Tundra Swan season in Ontario.
This is just Part 1 of the financial plan for my charitable foundation since another $250,000.00 will be transferred over from my RRSP account under Part 2 of the financial plan thereby providing an additional $10,000.00 annually for other waterfowl organizations whose members support this initiative.
Should you be interested in joining this Association of Tundra Swan Hunters regardless of where you live (since many American waterfowlers come to Canada to hunt) please contact me by e-mail (thebuddyboy@hotmail.com), regular mail (at the above address) or by telephone (519-586-9825) any evening (1900 to 2330 EST).
All the best to all of you this coming waterfowl season.
Sincerely,
J. Katchin, D.V.M.
Port Rowan, Ontario
N0E 1M0
September 01, 2014
Re: Association of Tundra Swan Hunters
Dear Fellow Waterfowlers:
I would like to start a small informal association of waterfowlers who are interested in having a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season implemented in Canada.
This association may include waterfowlers who already hunt Tundra Swans in the United States, waterfowlers who would like to hunt Tundra Swans in the United States and waterfowlers who would like to be able to hunt Tundra Swans in Canada as provided for within The Management Plan for the Eastern Population of Tundra Swans. Although there would be no charge for a membership in this association there would certainly be benefits in being a member ... more on this later.
I first asked Mr. J. Sullivan (Enforcement Officer, CWS) at the Toronto Hunting Show about 20 years ago about the possibility of a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season in Canada like they currently had in the United States and he said that it would depend upon the politicians since a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season was definitely sustainable ... way back then in the early 1990s.
I patiently waited year after year hoping that the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (OFAH) might evenually take the initiative with this idea but this was not to be. I finally decided in January of 2010 that someone had to take the first step with this idea. As I had already met with Dr. S. Petrie (Executive Director, LPW) regarding my participation in the satellite tracking program of scaup I requested an opportunity to discuss the possibility of a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season with him. Although he was very generous with his time to meet with me to discuss my proposal for a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season he informed me that he would not support such a proposal. However Dr. S. Petrie did suggest that I consider presenting other proposals that he would support (as the OFAH waterfowl representative) and he provided me with the documentation that I would need to prepare these proposals ... you now know about some of these other proposals.
The late Dr. D. Ankney (Chairperson of the Scientific Advisory Committee, LPW) however supported me and he provided me with The Management Plan for the Eastern Population of Tundra Swans so that I could prepare my proposal. Mr. J. Hughes (Head of Population Management, CWS) told me in September of 2010 (just prior to the submission of my Tundra Swan proposal) that "we will never have a Tundra Swan season until someone like you asks for one" and then told me that he was looking forward to receiving my proposal.
The rest is history as my Proposal for a Tundra Swan Recreational Harvest in the Province of Ontario was discussed at the Ontario Waterfowl Advisory Committee (OWAC) in November of 2010 without support for it being established at that time. However several waterfowlers then submitted individual letters of support for my Tundra Swan proposal to Mr. J. Hughes after reading my Long Point Waterfowlers' Association (LPWA) "waterfowl" threads and my Hunt Ontario "waterfowl" threads that included additional supporting documenation for my Tundra Swan proposal. A decision was subsequently made by the CWS in April of 2011 to conduct a Tundra Swan Season Assessment (see my separate thread on this topic) and I made a presentation to the LPWA membership at our AGM in the spring of 2011 that included a short survey. The short survey was completed and returned by 20% of the LPWA membership and definitely demonstrated a level of support for a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season in Ontario.
The CWS Tundra Swan Season Assessment was completed in 2013 and supported a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season in the provinces of Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan with provisions for the Province of Quebec (currently not included within the official management plan) to participate in this Canadian harvest.
What is needed now is for waterfowlers who are interested in a limited (tag only) Tundra Swan season to support this CWS Tundra Swan Season Assessment and insist that limited (tag only)Tundra Swan seasons are implemented in the appropriate areas of Canada as indicated within this assessment.
I realize that not every waterfowler in Canada will be interested in hunting Tundra Swans ... in fact ... only about 10,000 waterfowlers out of approxiamately 970,000 waterfowlers in the United States will hunt Tundra Swans from the eastern and western populations combined in any given year. I believe however that Canadian waterfowlers should have the option to hunt Tundra Swans without having to travel to the United States to hunt them.
Consequently I have pledged a $10,000.00 grant to help finance the CWS implementation of a Tundra Swan season in the Province of Ontario and a $4,000.00 annual grant for twenty (20) years to monitor the Tundra Swan harvest in the Province of Ontario. Furthermore I have also pledged to contribute another two (2) $5,000.00 grants for the implementation of Tundra Swan seasons in the Provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
This represents a total personal commitment of $100,000.00 to the CWS to implement Tundra Swan seasons in Canada.
I will have generated (earned) sufficient funds within The Dr. Jerome Katchin Waterfowl Foundation by the end of 2014 to be able to provide the CWS with the first $10,000.00 grant and will generate (earn) sufficient funds in subsequent years to be able to provide the CWS with the $4,000.00 annual grant for the next twenty (20) years. The remaining two (2) $5,000.00 grants will be available to the CWS as sufficient funds are generated (earned) by the additional capital being contributed to my charitable foundation between December of 2014 and December of 2019.
Consequently there will be an additional $21,000.00 (less the $10,000.00 for Manitoba and Saskatchewan if required) that will become available between the end of 2015 and the end of 2020 plus $6,000.00 annually thereafter for other waterfowl organizations whose members support this initiative.
The Tundra Swan tags in the United States currently cost $10.00 each. I have previously suggested a $20.00 fee for each Tundra Swan tag in my 2011 survey and the vast majority of respondents agreed that $20.00 (similar to the Wild Turkey tag) was reasonable. This could bring in nearly $80,000.00 per year in tag sales for the CWS to fund the program (since we are entitled to 41% of the 9600 tags available each year for just the eastern population) in addition to my $10,000.00 grant to implement the season and the annual $4,000.00 grant to monitor the harvest.
Furthermore I have pledged to reimburse 100 waterfowlers for their Tundra Swan tag (maximum of $20.00) if they support this proposal. So I have in essence "guaranteed" the CWS that they will sell at least 101 Tundra Swan tags (as I will buy one for myself) if they implement a Tundra Swan season in Ontario.
This is just Part 1 of the financial plan for my charitable foundation since another $250,000.00 will be transferred over from my RRSP account under Part 2 of the financial plan thereby providing an additional $10,000.00 annually for other waterfowl organizations whose members support this initiative.
Should you be interested in joining this Association of Tundra Swan Hunters regardless of where you live (since many American waterfowlers come to Canada to hunt) please contact me by e-mail (thebuddyboy@hotmail.com), regular mail (at the above address) or by telephone (519-586-9825) any evening (1900 to 2330 EST).
All the best to all of you this coming waterfowl season.
Sincerely,
J. Katchin, D.V.M.