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Meet Jack Sneden.
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{column2} He’s the man who removed traps from the dam in Oshawa during the recent efforts to prevent the killing of beavers in Goodman Creek. He used the trap to demonstrate the way the springing jaws could have injured a pet or a child and make the point that these devices were inhumane. The local representative from the Ministry of Natural Resources recently called him to get them back and Jack suggested he drop by. He handed over the two traps and the man handed him a citation. He can pay a fine of 420.00 dollars or appear in court to challenge the citation.{/column2} Guess which one he’s going to pick?
Mind you, this is the same case where the trapper got the memo that there was a temporary hold on the killing but wasn’t able to disable the traps because he was too busy. So one beaver died “by accident”. There are regulations about the frequency of checking traps but of course these are KILL TRAPS not snares so they only need to be checked like every two weeks. This horrible photo from the site shows the complex and advanced technology of 600 years of beaver killing: Rip out the dam and kill the beaver when he comes to fix it.
Good luck Jack! This is a media opportunity! March in with your supporters and a few dozen children and say that you were protecting the council from the massive bad press they were going to get if someone got hurt. How far away from the homes were these traps? It might be worth checking out the regulation. If all else fails hold an auction or a fundraiser so that the community can “purchase” your citation. Frame it and donate it to the local library along with a couple articles from the Toronto Sun.
