Oregon Hunters Association slams Fish and Wildlife Commission for ignoring hunters' views on blaze orange clothing
The Oregon Hunters Association today criticized the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission for not listening to Oregon's hunters and respecting their continued desire to make their own personal choices about the clothing they wear in the field when hunting in Oregon.
"The overwhelming majority of Oregon hunters stated loud and clear that they opposed a mandatory blaze orange clothing requirement for rifle hunting and most upland bird hunting," said OHA spokesman Duane Dungannon.
The Commission on Sept. 30 chose a modified version of Option 2, requiring a blaze orange upper body garment or hat for hunters under age 18 on big game rifle hunts and all upland bird hunts except turkey, starting Aug. 1, 2011.
Dungannon noted that a poll of more than 1,000 OHA members found that more than 70 percent opposed mandatory blaze orange clothing, and a month-long poll on OHA's web site (
www.oregonhunters.org) showed three quarters of the respondents to be in opposition. Public testimony at a series of hearings on big game regulations seemed to be even more one-sided in their opposition.
"Most hunters view the issue as one of personal choice," Dungannon said. "We hear hunters say that the Commission does not listen to them. This would have been a golden opportunity to show that they do listen to hunters."
During this latest round of debate on this issue, OHA stood by its adopted policy on the subject: "OHA supports the voluntary use of hunter orange clothing when appropriate in the field."
Citing statistics on ODFW's web site, Dungannon pointed out that Oregon has a stellar safety record in the field, better than most states that require blaze orange, and that hunting is statistically much safer than most other recreational activities. He added that roughly half of the few accidents that do occur result from unsafe gun handling or other actions that are not vision-related.
"A law requiring the use of blaze orange clothing will not have much of an effect on Oregon's hunting accident rate, because the number of accidents is already so low," he said.
"Oregon hunters believe that hunting safety in the field is more about education than mandating a particular color of clothing."
Dungannon said he's disappointed the Commission embraced the issue. "The Commission needs to get back on task in reversing the declines in our state's deer and elk herds and the dwindling number of Oregon hunters," Dungannon said. "Those are the real issues we need to be talking about, not adding needless new regulations."
OHA sponsors Hunter Education classes in communities throughout the state, and Dungannon said OHA will continue to stress the importance of being visible to other hunters during rifle hunting and most upland bird hunting, but OHA will maintain that it should be each individual's right to make the personal decisions about the choice of clothing worn in Oregon's great outdoors.
The Oregon Hunters Association is the state's largest pro-hunting organization, with 11,000 members and 27 chapters statewide. Its mission is "to provide abundant huntable wildlife resources in Oregon for present and future generations, enhancement of wildlife habitat and protection of hunters rights."
-- Bill Monroe
