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On January 18, 2019, Fredrick Thomson, a taxidermist from
Coaldale, Alberta, was sentenced following his conviction for
illegally importing a brown bear hide from Alaska.
Section 6(1) of the Wild Animal and Plant
Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial
Trade Act, "No person shall import into Canada any animal
or plant that was taken, or any animal or plant, or any part or
derivative of an animal or plant, that was possessed, distributed
or transported in contravention of any law of any foreign
state." Under the Alaska Hunting Regulations, if an
individual wants to take a bear hide out of the United States, a
federal CITES permit is required from the US Fish and Wildlife
Service, Law Enforcement Unit.
As a result of the violation, Thomson was ordered to pay a $20,000.00 fine, which will be directed to the
Government of Canada's Environmental Damages Fund. The order
also required that Thomson forfeit the hide and prohibited him from
hunting outside of Canada for two years. Thomson is also banned
from importing and exporting animals and their parts for two years,
if it is not related to his taxidermy business.
This charge arises from an extensive investigation into illegal
hunting of wildlife in Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia and the
Yukon. Authorities in the United States discovered several hunters
from Alberta were illegally killing, and importing, brown bears
from Alaska into Canada. The conviction came from – Operation Bruin – which is an extensive
North American investigation into illegal hunting of wildlife in
Alaska. Operation Bruin is a collaborative effort between
Environment and Climate Change Canada's Enforcement Branch, the
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Wildlife Troopers, and
Alberta Justice and Solicitor General (Fish and Wildlife
Enforcement) to enforce wildlife protection laws.
To date, six Canadians and two Americans have been convicted in
Canada under this initiative for violations of the Wild Animal
and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and
Interprovincial Trade Act. In total, $87,200.00 in penalties, and 28 years of
hunting bans and prohibitions against importing and exporting
animals to and from Canada, were imposed. In Alaska, 12 people has
been convicted as a result of Operation Bruin.
The Environment Damages Fund was created in 1995 and is
administered by Environment and Climate Change. The Environment
Damages Funds provides a mechanism to use the funds received as
a result of fines, court orders, and voluntary payments for
projects that benefit the natural environment.
This article was written with the assistance of student
at law Julia Ferreira.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.
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