On the last day before hunting season begins tomorrow, the Yukon Fish and Game Association (YFGA) is surprised and disappointed after learning permit hunts for Finlayson caribou will be cancelled this year in the Ross River area.

It comes after the Yukon government issued a release early this morning that permit hunts for the herd will not be issued after ongoing discussions with the Ross River Dena Council (RRDC).

“That was a decision that they made,” Charles Shewen, the YFGA’s president, told the Star this morning.

“We don’t get much notice; we’re going to have to deal with it.”

An Environment Yukon spokesperson pointed out that those permits had not been issued but placed on hold in early July.

Individual hunters were notified that while they were successful in having their names drawn, because of these ongoing conversations with the council, a final decision about the permits would be made before August.

“The announcement simply says when you’re hunting in the Ross River area, please follow these general rules – and by the way, there’s no Finlayson hunting this year,” Shewen sighed.

But it also came with no consultation with the YFGA, he added.

“The YFGA is disappointed,” he said.

The release itself could have been more clear as to laying out the motivations for the decision to cancel permits as related to conservation efforts as well, he added.

As of this morning, Shewen said, he had not been in touch with the department about these permits after the release.

However, he commended the government and Environment Minister Pauline Frost for their efforts in negotiating to RRDC.

Roxanne Stasyszyn is the director of communications for the department. While conversations were had between the Yukon government and RRDC on a government-to-government level, she said, the YFGA as a stakeholder was not notified.

“Those conversations are part of our regular practice,” she explained.

“We don’t put in place (these changes) without having the First Nations on which traditional territory that would apply” involved in the discussion, Stasyszyn added.

Interest groups like the YFGA are stakeholders, she said, adding that “government-to-government conversations are exactly that: they’re between governments.”

The dialogue with the RRDC has “been progressing regularly,” and the department has been doing its best to notify those impacted.

Individual hunters who would have been granted the 30 permits were told there was a hold on their permits and a final decision would be made by August, Stasyszyn said.

With the release dated July 31, she noted, the department has fulfilled that commitment.

But it does not take away from the surprise announcement issued just a day before the season starts, Shewen said, saying he still feels confused about the justification.

“I don’t think it’s a reason based on scientific (evidence).

“We have not been made aware of any conservation, any reasoning in conservation science for that decision,” Shewen said.

The association is supportive of having ongoing discussions with the First Nation to better provide certainty for both its members and hunters.

“The YFGA is a conservation organization,” he said, noting that he and the membership also shared similar concerns around wildlife management as the RRDC.

While disappointing, the decision to cancel the permits is understandable, Shewen said.

It would be less surprising and have been received better if the department had kept the organization as a whole in the loop about the potential to be entirely cancelling 30 permits.

“We’ve just been handed this (as an) outcome of discussions between” the RRDC and the territorial government, he said.

By cancelling the Finlayson caribou permits,“our concern has been realized in a different way,” Shewen explained.

“Now to hear those permits wont be issued at all – it’s definitely a bit of a surprise,” he said, adding that some hunters could have wanted to start hunting as early as Wednesday.

He said he was also unclear as to whether this would mean that those 30 permits would not be shifted on to a different breed – that is, the possibility of placing pressure on another breed in hopes to protect the Finlayson caribou herd.

“The YFGA would be glad to participate in recovery by stopping the hunt (of specific breeds),” Shewen said, but the lack of clarity around this being a reason made it difficult not to be surprised.

Stasyszyn clarified shortly after that this was not the case, and that those permits would be cancelled altogether.

“It’s not a matter of timing,” Shewen said, likening it to more of a “consultation issue.”

Noting that it is not uncommon for there to be restrictions placed on hunting specific herds or breeds, Shewen said that based on the release, it seemed to be connected more to the RRDC negotiations than conservation efforts.

“That’s not the backdrop here.”

Stasyszyn was able to confirm that there was conversation between the association and the department sometime last week (July 23 -July 27). However, details of that were not able to be confirmed by press time this afternoon.

That means the YFGA being notified of the possibility of Finlayson caribou herd permits being cancelled altogether could have happened, or it could not have.

But according to Shewen, the organization as a whole was not notified – and it would have appreciated being told.

“We’ve been talking to the minister, trying to create certainty for hunters in the Ross River area” for some time now, he said, especially when it comes to how best to share resources.

That’s why, he said, “we’re a bit surprised that negotiations have led to the shutdown of Finlayson caribou hunting in the area without consultation on why that needed to occur.”

The release notes that meetings between the minister and RRDC have taken place, with Frost saying that “I look forward to making progress on these issued with Ross River Dena Council and strengthening our government-to-government relationship.”

It’s that relationship, said Shewen, that can change over time and result in uncertainty for years, months or weeks down the road.

“With that in mind, we just want to make sure that this decision is as scientifically based and warranted for the good of the herd,” he said, and not just a result of negotiations between the RRDC.

Stasyszyn said that while the Finlayson herd would not be hunted this year, she was unable to confirm whether that would be the case for the following year.

“Whether or not this has implications for next year – that’s still to be determined,” she said.

The department had sat down with the RRDC after the council placed an ad in local newspapers on June requiring that all non-Kaska hunters get a permit from the council.

Shewen said he is grateful the release notes that compensation will be offered to hunters impcated.

But it also leaves questions as to what that form of compensation can take – monetary or something else.

“If (it) means pushing those hunters over to another herd, I think that maybe exacerbates our concerns.”

That’s not the case, Stasyszyn explained, offering some clarification.

She said the application fee will be refunded and an additional year’s weighting for the following year will be applied, after returning the individual’s weighting back to what it originally was before their name was drawn for the FInlayson herd permit.

That means that somebody with a weighting of five going into this year’s draw who had their name chosen would have seen it drop to zero.

Instead, after cancelling the permits, their weighting will rise to six and then seven for the following year – increasing the chances of them being chosen for the 2019 draw.

For his part, Shewen said he hopes that conservation played as big of a role in the decision as the hope to address some concerns of the RRDC.

“They need to be making wildlife management decisions based on sciences because if we don’t, it’s a slippery slope.”

That’s because it could open the door up to different (and maybe even more) breeds being considered, he said.

“Let’s make sure this is a scientific decision, not a feeling or an opinion or bargaining chip – because it’s not fair to the Yukon hunters.”

The release encourages hunters in the area to “voluntarily comply” with RRDCs request for a shorter moose and caribou season, and reach out to the council about any questions.

“YFGA doesn’t have any problems with that,” Shewen said, saying many members already contact the First Nation whose traditional territory they will be hunting in – especially for those hunting bison, sheep and moose.

“It’s well within the established norms.”

For his part, Shewen said the YFGA would likley be touching base with the department to get more details about its motivation.

“This is kind of an unwelcome surprise,” he sighed: “obviously, there’s things going on here that we’re not totally aware of.”

Stasyszyn told the Star on July 9 that there were more than 200 permits available for this season, with 34 of those being for caribou.

With 30 of those permits for specifically the Finlayson herd now cancelled, it leaves about eight caribou permits for the seaso