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Arizona Bans Trail Cameras: Claims it Violates Fair Chase

On June 11, the Arizona Game and Fish Commission voted unanimously to ban the use of trail cameras for aiding the take of wildlife (i.e. hunting). This rule change is effective Jan. 1, 2022. This ends a three-year-long debate in the state about the ethics of trail cameras and fair chase. 

Arizona is the first state to ban trail cameras statewide for hunters year-round on public and private land.

In 2018, Arizona banned trail cameras that could notify hunters in real-time, opening up a larger debate about what trail cameras should be allowed. In October 2020, Arizona Governor Doug Ducey approved an emergency rulemaking period based on a claim that trail cameras pose an immediate threat to public safety because of statements made on social media. In December 2020, the commission proposed a full ban on all trail cameras. 

Josiah Scott of the Arizona Sportsman’s Trail Camera Defense Fund gave testimony on the issue, saying: “I have hunted Arizona for 53 years and…have never had a significant threat or was afraid for my safety over a trail cam. You say someone is going to get hurt, somebody’s going to get shot over a trail cam and/or over social media disagreements over trail cams. That is a lie that you are perpetuating. Words are not guns.”

In response to public comments, an amended rule was proposed that would only prohibit trail cameras from July 1 to January 31, except within a quarter-mile of a developed water source. After several rounds of public comments opposed to the ban, the Commission reversed their decision and enacted a full ban on trail cameras. 

“What this issue comes down to for me is the issue of fair chase,” said Commissioner Clay Hernandez from Tucson. “It comes down to a question of passive surveillance or active surveillance. If we are out scouting, glassing, hiking, or shed hunting, we are out in the habitat, and we are providing scent, movement, patterns, and sound, all of which the animals we are seeking or scouting can make use of with their resources and instincts. If we are not out there and it is just a camera, we are silent. It is that that I don’t believe constitutes fair chase.”

Anti-hunting groups applauded the ban even with no data or science to back up the ban. As one commenter stated. “Everything I’ve heard today is people’s emotions, no science, either you like cameras or you don’t like cameras.”

Hopefully, this rule change is not the start of a trend for the rest of the nation. Game and Fish Commission chair Kurt Davis stated that limited water was a big factor, and if it were another state this issue would not be on the table. Let’s hope this is the case.

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