|
February 3, 2003
After 18 months of investigation and review of accepted
management options, the
Sifton Bog White-tailed Deer Community Steering Committee
submits its
Final Report, which outlines the research undertaken
regarding deer ecology, the situation of deer in the Bog in
2002, and a full discussion on various lethal and non-lethal
management techniques, and recommends that a controlled archery
hunt be implemented to decrease the number of deer in the Bog.
April 2003
The UTRCA passes a motion recognizing the wishes of the local
community and supports the recommendation of the Community
Steering Committee, that the herd be reduced by archery hunt in
2003.
June 9, 2003
Information report submitted to Planning Committee regarding the
final recommendation of the Sifton Bog White-tailed Deer
Community Steering Committee, and recommendation that a Public
Meeting be held at the Planning Committee meeting of June 30,
2003.
June 30, 2003
Report to Planning Committee recommending a Fall 2003 harvest of
White-tailed Deer in Sifton Bog, noting that a minimum of 8 deer
are to be retained in the Bog. Planning Committee and Municipal
Council do not accept the recommendation of the Community
Steering Committee or City staff, and direct that
staff report back in the Fall of 2003 regarding a Fall/ Winter
deer count and other
measures to address deer management.
|
|
May 2005
City of London’s Corporate Management Team considers a plan for
a controlled archery hunt as recommended by the Sifton Bog
Community Steering Committee. In the team’s view the plan would
have a limited effect on deer populations, would be controversial,
would
address only a small portion of the City, and would start the
municipality on a path of annual deer management without a
long-term strategy.
July 12, 2005
Sifton Bog Deer issue Update - The requirement for a City-wide
deer management plan was requested by Council; however, a course
of action would not be implemented until the ‘deer management
strategies’ have been addressed.
December 12, 2005
Report to Planning Committee recommending an eight step strategy
for addressing rising deer population in the City of London, as
developed in conjunction with the Upper Thames River
Conservation Authority, is accepted.
December 19, 2005
Municipal Council accepts seven of the eight steps of the
strategy accepted by Planning Committee. Council drops the
seventh step “to plan for a managed cull at the Sifton Bog as a
pilot test, if permitted by the MNR and if annual counts show an
uncontrolled increase in deer and/or increasing destruction of
natural features and/or unacceptable level of car-deer
incidents.”
August 7, 2007
City staff update report to Council on activities to implement the seven
acceptable deer management strategies approved by Council.
August 11, 2008
City staff update report to Council on activities to implement the seven
acceptable deer management strategies approved by Council in
response to specific concerns around the Sifton Bog.
January 26, 2009
Sifton Bog Master Plan - Planning Committee approval of the
Conservation Master Plan with 55 recommendations to address the
long-term management of Sifton Bog ESA, including assessing the
impacts of surplus deer on the sensitive bog ecosystem.
February 2, 2009
City Council adopted and approved the Sifton Bog Environmentally
Significant Area (ESA) Conservation Master Plan for 2009-2019,
and requested that the Civic Administration report back at a future Environment and Transportation
Committee meeting with respect to the following, as it
pertains to the white-tailed deer in the Sifton Bog:
-
immediate non-lethal solutions that
would include anaesthetizing the deer to remove and
relocate them from the Bog;
-
options on the best way to keep the
deer from returning to the Bog, once removed, including
the creation of a feeding station away from the Bog
area;
-
long term solutions that may
include the Spay-Vac Vaccine.
April 6, 2009
Environment and Transportation Committee resolved that the
following actions be taken with respect to white-tailed deer
management options in Sifton Bog:
-
the Ministry of Natural Resources and
the UTRCA be asked by
the Municipal Council to conduct a legal deer hunt in the
Fall of 2009;
-
the Civic Administration be asked to
report back to the Environment and Transportation Committee
by July, 2009 with respect to the following:
-
an integrated white-tailed deer
management action plan for the medium and long-term
strategy to preserve the Sifton Bog, relating to the
removal of buckthorn and inappropriate human activity in
the Sifton Bog;
-
the City Solicitors Office be asked
to investigate the feasibility of establishing a fine
for people feeding deer in the Sifton Bog; it being
noted that the requested fine amount is $250.00;
-
a communication strategy to educate
Londoners, in the area around the Sifton Bog, on the
significance of the Sifton Bog; and
-
the City Solicitors Office be asked to
investigate the feasibility of establishing a fine for
people feeding deer in the Sifton Bog; it being noted that
the requested fine amount is $250.00.
April 20, 2009
City Council amended and approved the ETC
report as follows:
That the following actions be taken with
respect to white-tailed deer:
-
the request for a legal deer hunt in
the Fall of 2009 by the Ministry of Natural Resources and
the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority be deferred
pending receipt of the staff report containing additional
scientific data and research, which is anticipated to be
submitted for consideration in February 2010;
-
the Civic Administration be asked to
report back to the Environment and Transportation Committee
by July, 2009 with respect to the following:
-
an integrated white-tailed deer
management action plan for the medium and long-term
strategy to preserve the Sifton Bog, relating to the
removal of buckthorn and inappropriate human activity in
the Sifton Bog;
-
a communication strategy to educate
Londoners, in the area around the Sifton Bog, on the
significance of the Sifton Bog;
-
the City Solicitors Office be asked to
investigate the feasibility of establishing a fine for
people feeding deer in the Sifton Bog; it being noted that
the requested fine amount is $250.00;
-
the Civic Administration be requested
to ask the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) for detailed
information on what options are available to address deer
overpopulation concerns in the Sifton Bog, including the
possibility of a "deer drive", and to report back thereon,
including estimates of the costs associated with the various
options, including fencing, that are brought forward by the
MNR; and
-
the Civic Administration be asked to
consult with the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority
and report back at a future meeting of the Environment and
Transportation Committee with respect to the broader issues
of deer management in the City of London.
BACK
to Sifton Bog
|
