Hunting along undeveloped road allowances should not be permitted

By Jamie Rieger

Terry Raymond has been traveling around Alberta recently approaching municipalities, including the County of Forty Mile, and organizations in hopes of gathering support to change provincial legislation that is currently written to allows hunters to discharge a firearm along or from an undeveloped road allowance even if they do not have permission from the adjacent landowner.
“This is more common in areas close to large centres, but it is likely happening in more remote areas, too,” said Raymond.
“I want to make clear that this is not about access. There is no intent here to deny public access on undeveloped road allowances. This is not about an individual landowner. This is not about attempting to deny public access on a road allowance. This is about something that is unethical and wrong.”
Raymond said at times the hunter will shoot the animal, then walk off the road allowance into the landowner’s property to retrieve it.
“That is trespassing and if the animal is shot on private property, that is poaching,” he said.
In some places, the undeveloped road allowance may be hard to distinguish and are owned by the province. They are located in north-south directions every mile from the east and west boundaries of the province and every second mile in the east-east directions.
“Hunters know where these boundaries are and they have to act responsibly in knowing where they are,” he said.
The County of Forty Mile is asking for feedback from its residents before making a decision.