BC Conservation Officer Service Access Management Compliance and Enforcement Program (AMCEP) May/June Report Compiled by Conservation Officer Patricia Burley May 15-June 30, 2013 Chauncey Todhunter AMA Photo taken June 10, Ewin Draw 1
Introduction The May/June Access Management Compliance and Enforcement Program (AMCEP) Report is the first report for the 6 month period for 2013 completed by Conservation Officer (CO) Burley. This is the second year that CO Burley has been the designated Access Guardian in the Elk Valley from May 15-Nov 15. The AMCEP was developed in 2009, but did not have a set contract until 2011 for a potential 5 year commitment. CO Burley s priority focus is on the Access Management Areas (AMA s) for the 6 month period within the Regional District of East Kootenay s Electoral Area A. Currently, the AMCEP is the only Conservation Officer (CO) position in all of British Columbia.Thank you to the RDEK, Columbia Basin Trust, other stakeholder groups and the Communities of Fernie, Sparwood and Elkford for making the essential program a success. The following information is some highlights from the start of 2013 to the end of June. Grave Prairie AMA (figure 1 and 2) continues to be the busiest AMA in the Elk Valley used by recreation groups year round. The Fernie CO s conducted patrols throughout the winter season and continue their patrols on a weekly basis. Grave Prairie also has the highest non-compliance rate with AMA charges. On May 8 th, CO Burley and CO DeBoon patrolled Grave Prairie where they found new tracks from ATV s and trucks in the grasslands off of Valley Road. Branches and trees were pulled across the new trails in hopes that it would deter people from entering these closed areas. It was only a matter of time when the brush was removed and the grassland habitat was impacted. During May 17, 18 and June 10 th 3 AMA violation tickets and 1 AMA warning ticket were issued. Another investigation is ongoing. On June 26 th CO Burley and CO Garay attended Fernie Court for a disputed Grave Prairie violation ticket. The Judge deemed the accused guilty and did not accept the accused s argument of limited signage as an excuse for not knowing about the closed access area. The rational for Grave Prairie s legislated protection was created in 1991 for the refuge for wildlife populations from motorized activity in high quality wildlife habitats to reduce the risk of displacement and disturbance of wildlife and adverse impacts to habitat quality and effectiveness. It also provides a diversified hunting and recreational opportunity. Grave Prairie supports one of three main winter ranges for elk populations and is a winter range for mule deer and elk. There is also a concern with the spread of invasive plants. Yellow AMA signs and large coloured maps are displayed on both entrances to the AMA to make people aware of the closure. 2
Figure 1: Grave Prairie AMA boundary. Figure 2: Grave Prairie AMA seasonally opened road (May 15-Sept 30) north access to Grave Lake. 3
Vehicle Use Prohibited signs are posted throughout all the AMA s. People are not to drive onto these trails or roads that have these signs posted; motor vehicle use is prohibited and illegal in these areas. People should make it a standard to research maps before recreating in an AMA, but should not become dependent on the signs as they go missing. It is a violation under the Wildlife Act to remove, damage, alter or destroy any sign legally posted in support of the AMCEP. The Conservation Officer Service will be putting up trail cameras in the high abuse areas to help catch violators. A new tool has been purchased in support of the AMCEP for 2013. A 2013 Artic Cat Prowler 700 side by side UTV was purchased in late April. This is an asset to the COS team as it makes travel for two officers safer and practical to carry more equipment. On May 10 th Sgt Caravetta and CO Burley took the UTV out for its first patrol through Wigwam Flats AMA (figure 3). The CO s patrolled from Lodgepole FSR to Ram Creek FSR through the Wigwam gate to the Rocky Ridge Road back out onto River Road. This loop is well known to many of the locals in the Valley, but everyone should be reminded that it is closed in the middle section near Purple Canyon year round. Rocky Ridge Rd on the Southeast end of Mt Broadwood and the Wigwam Gate Rd is only open to motorized vehicles from June 15-July 15. Figure 3: New Arctic Cat Prowler purchased in April 2013 in support of the AMCEP The RCMP May Long Weekend Project took place from May 16-20 near Baynes Lake. CO Burley worked in the Lake Koocanusa area on May 17 and 19 with other CO s, RCMP, Natural Resource Officers (NRO) and Environment Canada. The stats and numbers checked for that weekend will be part of next month s report. Lake Koocanusa s crown land, recreational camp sites and 4
Provincial Parks were all patrolled. A number of intoxicated drivers were taken off the road and sites were checked for safety. There was no fire ban this year, but the regular camp fire size and tools (shovel, water) were being enforced. Mudbogging was observed in the sandy flats of Lake Koocanusa, but no environmental damage violations were observed. Every year the CO s and NRO s have to deal with litter left in the area from campers. Figure 7 shows a picture of a campsite that was left with a large pile of garbage. The picture was put on Facebook with a large number of people commenting. The NRO s cleaned up the litter on May 20 and have plate numbers of the people that were camped there. The investigation is ongoing. On May 17th CO Burley patrolled Wigwam Flats AMA for a number of public complaints that came in regarding hunters accessing some of the closed roads (Drinkwater) within the AMA. Trail cameras were put up in the area to help identify people who may be accessing the closed roads during black bear hunting season and grizzly bear Limited Entry Draws (LEH. The Drinkwater road has a closed gate on it, but is open from June 15-Aug 31 (figure 4). On May 18 CO Burley patrolled Corbin, Wigwam Flats and Grave Prairie AMA. The weather turned out to be rainy and cold that day, but it did not deter campers from staying out of Grave Prairie. The Grave Lake Camp Ground was full and the Swinging Bridge Road had a large number of camp trailers parked there for the weekend. Approximately 22 people were spoken to and educated on the AMA. Only a couple of campers were in the Corbin area. No off road vehicles were observed. On the way to Lake Koocanusa on May 19th, CO Burley spoke to approximately 20 dirt bikers at the sand pit in Sheep Mountain AMA near the Elko Mill. They were educated on the AMA since there are many trails made from the sand pit, which is used as a dirt bike park, within the closure. Many dirt bikers thought the pipeline was open to ride, but CO Burley explained that the pipeline is part of the closed boundary and is not open to motorized vehicles. Figure 5 was taken in Sheep Mountain that day. 5
Figure 4: Example of trail camera photo taken in Wigwam Flats AMA. Figure 5: Sheep Mountain AMA May 19. 6
Figure 6: Lake Koocanusa; vehicles mud bogging at sandpit. Figure 7: Litter left over from an abandoned campsite at Lake Koocanusa on May Long Weekend. 7
Every year the CO s throughout the Province have to recertify on their defensive tactics, pistols, rifles and shotguns. On May 30-June 1 the CO s attended Creston for their annual training. During that training the CO s took part in a retirement party for a CO that concluded his career with 26 years of service. Every year there are dedicated CO s with a wealth of knowledge that leave the service, but pass on their stories and wisdom to the greener CO s. In early June Elkford and Sparwood had a new Bylaw Officer working for them. In order to build new relationships with other enforcement branches and to gain consistency with the local regulations, CO Burley conducted a patrol with Bylaw Officer Christian. On June 5 CO Burley took her to the Upper Elk Valley AMA (figure 8) to show her the beauty the Valley has to offer. One bear hunter and a group of recreationist on a drive were checked. Numerous trails off of the open road onto the closed AMA were observed. Figure 8: Upper Elk Valley AMA Spring is a busy time for ungulates (moose, elk and deer) to look after their young. Sometimes the young are found in the bush without a mother. It is not recommended for the public to pick up any orphaned wildlife that they may find. Sometimes the mother will leave their young in areas for safety while they are off grazing, other times they may be orphaned due to natural causes or vehicle accidents. On June 8 th a cow moose was seen dead on the shoreline of Hartley Lake. An angler was on the lake in his boat when he saw the calf running back and forth along the shore. The calf attempted to swim to him, but started to sink, so he scooped it up and brought it back to Fernie. CO s were called and had to deal with the occurrence now that there was human interaction. The calf moose named Hartley (figure 9) had a lucky ending as there was room for him at the rehab centre in Nelson. CO Burley and CO Deboon picked her up and took her to Jaffray where she was later relocated by volunteers to Nelson. Many fawns and calves are brought to town by concerned citizens, but are not as lucky as Hartley. Sometimes 8
nature is harsh, but it is best for the animal to stay in the bush or if it is brought to town they can be euthanized by a CO. Figure 9: Calf moose rescued from Hartley Lake. On June 9-11 CO Garay, CO Connatty and Sgt Caravetta conducted patrols in the Upper and East Flathead AMA s for Grizzly LEH and black bear hunters. On June 8 th 12 bear hunters, 8 ATVers and 3 snowmobilers were checked by CO Garay. It goes to show the variety of recreationist that use the flathead at one given time. The Outdoor Access Guide was given out to a number of the people checked. On June 10 th, while the south was being patrolled, CO Burley patrolled the north at Chauncey/Todhunter AMA. A complaint from the public came into her regarding people driving on some of the closed roads. With the help of the public the CO s have a better chance at catching some of the violators with a quicker response time. CO Burley did not find anyone in the closure that day. Most signs were left up in the AMA from the previous season. Sgt Caravetta was filmed on June 19 for a promotional video on jobs in British Columbia for becoming a Conservation Officer. CO Burley and CO Garay assisted with the professional film crew on out takes for the video. Similar commercials can be view at the following website called Career Trek BC. The COS video will be available for viewing in January 2014 #88: http://www.careertrekbc.ca/ 9
As most of the Elk Valley experienced the flash flood of 2013 June 20 was just the start of it. CO Burley patrolled Wigwam Flats AMA to Misery Flats FSR to put up an AMA sign that was reported to have been ripped down. As she was leaving she took a picture of the Lodgepole Creek which was quickly rising (figure 10). The roads started to deteriorate, so it was a good time to leave. AMA s were not patrolled the following weekend. On June 24, CO Deboon patrolled Grave Prairie to shut the Swinging Bridge gate as the road started to wash out and motorized vehicles were starting to drive on the grass section of the closure. Figure 10: Lodgepole Creek in Wigwam/Mt Broadwood AMA CO Burley along with other BC CO s, Yukon CO s, Vancouver Transit Police and BC Sheriff s became Peer Members on June 30. She took a Critical Incident Stress Management Course (CISM) in Vancouver on June 26-30. CISM is an important part of any emergency service personal to have when a serious incident takes place. People need time to talk, heal and understand that there is help out there to deal with certain issues that might develop with a stressful situation. The COS now has a program within their agency to help deal with stressful experiences. Since early 2013 outreach presentations have been conducted by CO Burley to a number of stakeholder groups. Mayor and Council Members from Fernie, Sparwood and Elkford along with the RDEK were presented with a powerpoint of the 2012 AMCEP Results (Feb/Mar). Sparwood Secondary School, Isabella Dickens School and Elkford Secondary School were provided with AMA, mud bogging and career power point presentations on May 29 and June 10. CO Burley presented the 2012 results to the Fernie Rod and Gun Club s Meeting on May 8. The Cranbrook ATV Club had its AGM on April 24th which consisted of 35 members. The group was very interactive with CO Burley s presentation asking questions throughout the whole presentation. She spent almost 2 hours at the meeting speaking to the group who are a fairly new ATV Club. The Elkford ATV Club had CO Burley take part at their AGM on June 9. Many 10
AMA questions were brought up and answered within the group. The Fernie Trails Alliance had their AGM on May 25; information was sent over email for their meeting. The email CO Burley sent was distributed on Facebook and to other bike clubs in the area. Cranbrook s Mountain Bike Club had a bike race booked in Wigwam Flats and cancelled it. The following email is what was sent out to the group. "The Wigwam Flats Access Management Area ("AMA") is always a topic of discussion with mountain bikers and the motorized vehicle community. The CO s ask mountain bikers to try and stick to the main developed roads within the AMA. We want to prevent new trails from being created since the reason the AMA was developed was because of the spread of invasive plants from tires (nap weed, st. johns wart, blue weed). Everyone within the Wigwam Flats AMA are asked to keep dogs leashed. This is to prevent the harassment of wildlife in the area which is an offense under the Wildlife Act. The flats are an important ecological habitat that all kinds of wildlife rely on throughout the year. Trucks, ATV s and dirt bikes are not allowed off the main Rocky Ridge Rd when the gates are open from June 15-July 15. If mountain bikers or hikers see any motorized vehicles within the AMA closed areas, they can report plate numbers, date, time and description of the vehicle (photos really help) to the 24hr RAPP line: 1-877-952-7277. If any of your members have questions regarding AMA s in the area, please forward them to me. I d be happy to answer them. Thank you for your time, Patricia Burley The Outdoor Access Guide will be printed again in August 2013. It will not be distributed in the Fernie Free Press this year, but will have copies available in Cranbrook, Elko, Grassmere, Fernie, Sparwood, Elkford and the Pass. Approximately 5000 copies will be printed and paid for all by donation from user groups from the Elk Valley. The Outdoor Access Guide is not an official Government document, so it relies on donations for it to be printed and then used as an educational tool for the public. A survey will be added to the Outdoor Access Guide this year for feedback from the public. See below: 2013 Access Management Survey Draft Proposal Request: I would like to have members of the public fill out the following survey Do you drive on unpaved backroads (ex: Forest service roads, cutlines, trails, etc) using any motor vehicle, such as a truck, car, ATV, motorcycle or UTV? If there was a road closed sign on a hard packed road, which led to where you wanted to go, would you still drive on it? Have you ever heard of Access Management Areas. Areas throughout the Elk Valley which have road closures and limited vehicle access. If you had the Hunting Synopsis and Outdoor Access Guide with you would you take the time to read it? Do you think that the Conservation Officer Service spends enough time patrolling and enforcing road closed areas? If it was not difficult to do so, would you drive around a locked gate to get where you wanted to go? 11
Do you know to look in the BC Hunting Regulation Synopsis (available in print and online) to find maps of where the road closures are? Do you know to look at the Outdoor Access Guide (available in print and online) to find maps of where the road closures are? If there was a road closed sign on a grown over or hardly used road, which led to where you wanted to go, would you still drive on it? Are you in favour of having areas where no motorized vehicles are allowed? Do you think the possibility of a $230.00 fine keeps people from driving in a road closed area? Do you think the possibility of an ATV, truck or snowmobile being seized by a CO keeps people from driving in a road closed area? If a road, which was closed to motorized vehicles, but went where you wanted to go, was blocked by a fallen tree or a rock would you move the obstacle to get through? yes no Additional Comments: (where do you think most people are driving in closed areas, What could be done to a road to make sure that no one drives on it What more could be done to make sure that people know about where the road closures are What do you think is a strict enough penalty to keep people from driving into a close area) Purpose: obtain information which will be valuable in making future recommendations as well as for establishing best management practices for enforcing local Access Management Areas (AMAs). Information will be summarized and discussed in the final AMA report. Survey Question Have you ever heard of Access Management Areas. Areas throughout the Elk Valley which have road closures and limited vehicle access? Do you drive on unpaved backroads (ex: Forest service roads, cutlines, trails, etc) using any motor vehicle, such as a truck, car, ATV, motorcycle or UTV? If there was a road closed sign on a hard packed road, which led to where you wanted to go, would you still drive on it? If there was a road closed sign on a grown over or hardly used road, which led to where you wanted to go, would you still drive on it? If it was not difficult to do so, would you drive around a locked gate to get where they wanted to go If a road, which was closed to motorized vehicles, but went where you wanted to go, was blocked by a fallen tree or a rock would you move the obstacle to get through? Do you know to look in the BC Hunting Regulation Synopsis or Outdoor Access Guide (available in print and online) to find maps of where the road closures are? If you had the Hunting Synopsis and Outdoor Access Guide with you would you take the time to read it? Do you think that the Conservation Officer Service spends enough time patrolling road closed areas? Are you in favour of having areas where no motorized vehicles are allowed? Objective Are people aware of the AMA program Allows for the comparison of opinion between users and nonusers Is there a different perception of well used vs less used roads Does more need to be done to deactivate hardpacked roads vs older roads Does something more need to be done to block access determine the utility of natural barricades Does information need to be more accessible Is there public interest in an Outdoor Regulations Synopsis What is the current public opinion of access enforcement Gauge public support of the program 12
Do you think the possibility of a $230.00 fine keeps people from driving in a road closed area? Should enforcement become more strict Statistics Figure 11: Current Summary of total time spent in the field up to June 30, 2013. Figure 12: Current Summary of statistics up to June 30, 2013. The filtered numbers are for the month of May/June. Figure 13: Current Summary of total outreach provided to the public up to June 30, 2013. 13
It should be noted that Officer Presence is calculated as the time Officer(s) were physically present in an AMA, it does not account for travel. People that are educated are defined as COS discussing specific AMA facts and requirements for which the person in question was previously unaware. It should be noted that the Access Guardian Program and general AMA facts are discussed with more than 80% of contacts. Summary CO Burley s confidence with knowing the area is much higher during this year compared to her first year in the Elk Valley. More time should be spent in the field since the CO s now all have rugged lap tops. People s history can be searched online while being checked. More members of the public have been calling and emailing her to report violations within the AMA or for common questions that people are unsure of. She believes the word is being spread throughout the area. CO Burley s time was also spent following up with Human Wildlife Occurrence Reports (HWOR) when other CO s were not available. Officer time is taken up in the office to deal with any PWORs, tickets, project reports or non-compliance investigations (photocopying, scanning ect). CO Burley has been adding her time to the 2013 Excel spreadsheet when working on investigations, the Outdoor Access Guide and working on the AMA Reports. The people in the East Kootenay s have such a great opportunity to explore the beauty of the Rockies which provides a variety of recreational experiences. CO Burley is enjoying making contact with all these user groups and will continue to build a better understanding to the public of the laws and regulations that are built around them. If you have any questions or concerns about the May/June AMA Report or questions for CO Burley, she can be contacted at: RAPP 1-877-952-7277 Desk 250-423-4264 Cell 250-423-1888 patricia.burley@gov.bc.ca 1621A 10th Avenue P.OBox 2877, Fernie, BC, V0B1M0 The Conservation Officer Service is a public safety provider focussed on natural resource law enforcement and human wildlife conflicts prevention and response. Our Vision: To be a progressive and respected leader in environmental compliance and enforcement, shared stewardship and public safety. The Conservation Officer Service Motto is: Integrity, Service and Protection 14
Please see the attached Excel 2013 Stats for more detail of the Access Guardian s patrols and outreach efforts from January to June 30, 2013. Maps To reduce document size, AMA maps have not been included in this report. If required maps of individual AMAs are available from two sources, the Ministry of Environment website (www.env.gov.bc.ca/kootenay/eco/accessmaps.htm) and the Hunting Regulations Synopsis. The hunting synopsis is available in print and online (www.env.gov.bc.ca/fw/wildlife/hunting/regulations/). The maps available from the MOE website are in colour and contain much greater detail. 15