Sample text: Establishing a professional wildlife warden corps
1. Motion
The government is instructed to submit to the cantonal parliament a proposal to amend the Law on Hunting and Wildlife Protection (... law designation ...) as well as the Hunting Ordinance (... ordinance designation ...), with which in canton (...) the professional wildlife warden corps will be strengthened in terms of personnel, expertise and organization and gradually established as the primary authority for wildlife management. The legislative revision must particularly ensure that
- canton (...) at least doubles the number of full-time employed, cantonally trained wildlife wardens within five years, so that comprehensive, professional care of cantonal wildlife populations is guaranteed
- the job profile for cantonal wildlife wardens is expanded to include mandatory competencies in wildlife ecology, animal welfare law, conflict management with the public, non-lethal management methods and scientific monitoring
- tasks that are currently delegated to hobby hunters (population surveys, damage assessments, regulatory decisions, controls) are gradually transferred to the sole responsibility of the professional wildlife warden corps
- a binding code of ethics is introduced that ensures the independence of wildlife wardens from hunting associations and hunting interests
In particular, it must be legally regulated that
- wildlife wardens may not simultaneously work as hobby hunters (incompatibility regulation) to exclude conflicts of interest
- funding for the expanded wildlife ranger corps comes from existing hunting license fees, nature and animal protection funds, and savings from eliminating hunting delegation structures
- the wildlife ranger corps is subordinated to the cantonal Office for Nature and Environment and not to the hunting administration, to ensure organizational separation between enforcement and hunting interest representation
- the government reports to the cantonal parliament every three years on staffing levels, qualifications and results of the wildlife ranger corps
The government considers in its proposal the experiences of Canton Geneva, which has operated purely professional wildlife management since 1974, as well as the necessary transitional provisions.
2. Brief Justification
In most Swiss cantons, wildlife management is effectively carried out by hobby hunters who count those animals in a part-time capacity whose shooting they subsequently perform themselves. This personal union of data collection, decision-making and enforcement is inconceivable in any other area of public administration.
Professional wildlife rangers possess broad technical training that extends far beyond shooting technique. Where wildlife rangers rather than hobby hunters are responsible, work is demonstrably more transparent, science-based and less conflict-prone.
The Arguments for Professional Wildlife Rangers shows that a professional wildlife ranger corps is superior to the militia system in all decisive dimensions. Canton Geneva has practiced purely professional wildlife management without recreational hunting for over 50 years – with stable wildlife populations and high public acceptance.
The costs of an expanded wildlife ranger corps are manageable and largely financeable from existing funds. The present motion calls on the government to put the canton (...) on the path to modern wildlife management – with professionals instead of recreational shooters.