About US......
The formation of the
Committee for Responsible Wildlife Management
(CRWM) was proposed by concerned citizens of Massachusetts who
believe that in recent years, there has been an urgent need for people to be reintroduced
to and reconnected with the true meaning of conservation and the proper management of our
resident furbearing wildlife. In 1996, Massachusetts
lost the ability to properly regulate and manage furbearer populations using the most
effective and efficient tools available. Since
that time furbearers have experienced wide swings in population densities, rampant disease
outbreaks, imbalances in predator/prey relationships, sharp increases in human/animal
conflicts and property damage. The goals of
the CRWM are to disseminate factual information supported by decades of research on proper
furbearer wildlife management, explain why it is essential on today’s landscape, and
begin to build a network of citizens willing to take the next step in rectifying the
current situation by getting involved.
As a group, we believe in the
“responsible use” of our natural resources for the benefit of both wildlife and
society. Not only do we believe this to be
appropriate, but essential for the continued, healthy co-existence between modern society
and the natural world. Aldo Leopold once
described conservation as “the state of harmony between man and the land”. He went on to write “the real substance of
conservation does not lie in the physical projects of governments, but the mental
processes of citizens”. Aldo Leopold, one
of the great founding fathers of the modern conservation movement was saying that each of
us are responsible for the health of our natural world around us, which means we must
participate in it, not just be a spectator of it. This
participation takes on many forms in our society today.
Some open their wallets and give money, others volunteer in environmental
programs, while others become intimately involved in utilizing wildlife’s bounty
through hunting, fishing and trapping. This
last group, the ones who have decided to use wildlife, many through traditions past down
through generations have become the most misunderstood in our increasingly urbanized
society. “How could someone willing to
take the life of an animal, still have respect for it - isn’t killing wrong?” This question gets at the heart of the
current debate as to whether hunting or trapping is an acceptable activity or even needed
today. It also underscores the
disconnect many people have with natures order and our
natural position in it. We
believe this position is one where we
are intimately interconnected with the natural world and its entire cycle of life - in which we are
inescapably forever intertwined. It is this understanding
and participation in the entire cycle that creates deep lasting ties and tremendous
respect for the land and its wild inhabitants that span all positions in society. Attempts to break this bond, by portraying these
people as blood thirsty killers not only needlessly degrades respect for fellow citizens,
but undermines the corner stone of modern North American wildlife management initiated by
President Theodore Roosevelt over 100 years ago.
While for some, all this talk about about death
being part of life makes them a bit queasy. But it is still critical that
we as a society understand that this is the world we live in and position we
have. However, with that unique and powerful position comes with it a
tremendous responsibility for not only us, but for our environment and all
living things. With that being said, animal welfare is
extremely important and of the
highest priority for the CRWM, as well as for every state agency tasked to manage wild
populations. Since the general trapping ban
went into effect in 1996 here in Massachusetts there have been significant advances in the
design of live restraint and kill devices to capture furbearing wildlife, making them much
more efficient and extremely humane. While
examining the act of managing wildlife, one must not equate ‘death with cruelty’
– for death is an inescapable result of life. However,
the welfare of animals and compassion for them is not only desirable, but essential for
our humanity. These technological advances
have been documented in the Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (AFWA) “Best
Management Practices for Trapping in North America” (BMP’s). Please review all the materials provided, and join
us in reestablishing trapping as a responsible, humane and effective furbearer management
tool in Massachusetts.
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