I am deeply disturbed by recent efforts by our local Senators, Christopher Bray, Bristol, and Ruth Hardy, Middlebury, to write legislation to remove the responsibility of the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Board in cooperation with our Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department’s sole mission to manage healthy wildlife and fish populations throughout Vermont.

Bill S.258, written by Bray and Hardy, is an anti-hunting, anti-fishing and anti-trapping effort. These two Addison County Senators wrote S.258 as an attempt to dismantle the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Board and place critical wildlife and fisheries management decisions in the hands of those not connected to outdoor pursuits, ie. “non-consumptive users.” This bill will essentially allow anti-hunting, anti-fishing, and anti-trapping activists to rewrite hunting and fishing laws and seasons and make critical choices in the management of Vermont wildlife and fish populations. Let me make this clear. Anti-hunting, anti-trapping, and anti-Fishing activists could be making the rules.

Let me give you more background on S.258. The bitter truth unknown to most Vermonters is that Bray and Hardy’s bill was not brought about by local dismay of hunting, fishing, and trapping, but in cooperation with a radical closet animal rights group called Protect Our Wildlife, POW. For many years, POW has been struggling for traction to change the statewide rules on coyote hunting and an all-out ban on trapping in Vermont. POW activists have attended Fish & Wildlife Board meetings for years in an attempt to change hunting and trapping laws. For the most part, their efforts have been deflected by sound judgment by the board and the professional biologists of the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department,

POW is a closet radical anti-hunting and anti-trapping animal rights group with ideals consistent with the global animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, PETA. Check out either of their websites. Any reasonable person can see their mission. They do not represent the current and historical views of Addison County residents and Vermonters. These groups use emotions and fear tactics to drive their mission to deny hunting, fishing and trapping to all.

Nationwide, Vermont has one of the highest per-capita participation rates in hunting, fishing and trapping. This fact is undeniable. Even if you yourself don’t hunt, fish, or trap, more than likely you have relatives, friends and colleagues who do. Responsible hunting, fishing, and trapping are healthy outdoor activities that thousands of Vermonters enjoy and also bring multi-millions in revenues to Vermont’s economy.

Now appears S.258, a bill introduced by our current Senators Bray and Hardy. The language of this bill is a complete reflection of POW and their anti-hunting and anti-trapping sentiment. This is not coincidence. These are facts.

Are Bray and Hardy in tight with POW? I say beyond a reasonable doubt. Brenda Galdenzi, the ringleader of POW, couldn’t have written this bill any better. Why, Senators Bray and Hardy are you writing anti-hunting, anti-trapping, and anti-fishing bills contrary to the current and historic beliefs of Vermonters?

My recent efforts to elicit a response from Bray or Hardy have not worked. If Bray or Hardy will not comment publicly on their reasoning for writing S.258, it speaks measures of their character or ability to write laws that benefit the citizens of Vermont.

Fred Schroeder

Bristol