Colorado to Enact Fair Chase Policy on Drones

Advancements in technology — in particular, the proliferation of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly known as drones — is continuing to prompt restrictive regulations from state game agencies, state lawmakers and other groups that manage lands for wildlife and recreation.

The latest move comes from the Colorado Wildlife and Parks Commission, which, after the second reading of a proposal at its regular meeting in May, is poised to approve a new fair chase policy that specifically defines fair chase practices.

“The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission defines Fair Chase as the ethical, sportsmanlike, and lawful pursuit and taking of free-ranging Colorado wildlife in a manner that does not give a hunter or angler improper or unfair advantage over such wildlife. … The Commission recognizes that new or evolving technologies and practices may provide hunters or anglers with an improper or unfair advantage in the pursuit and taking of wildlife, or may create a public perception of an improper or unfair advantage. Improper advantage includes conditions such as:

- A technology or practice that allows a hunter or angler to locate or take wildlife without acquiring necessary hunting and angling skills or competency.

- A technology or practice that allows a hunter or angler to pursue or take wildlife without being physically present and pursuing wildlife in the field.

- A technology or practice that makes harvesting wildlife almost certain when the technology or practice prevents wildlife from eluding take.”

Colorado was the first state to ban the use of drones for hunting or scouting in 2014. Since that time, Michigan, New Hampshire, Alaska, New Mexico and Montana have banned drone use by hunters, either through legislation or regulatory action by the state game commission. Game agencies in Idaho and Wisconsin have determined drone use was already covered under current prohibitions of aircraft to hunt, to harass hunters or to disturb wildlife.

If the Colorado Commission approves the proposal later this month, as expected, it would become the first state to address drone use and technology as part of its tenets of fair chase.

Earlier this year, the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department acted to prohibit the use of drones, smart rifles and live-action game cameras while hunting or attempting to take wildlife.

“We needed to establish rules regarding these fast-changing technologies to make sure that people understand that their use for hunting is not appropriate or ethical,” said Fish and Game Law Enforcement Major Kevin Jordan. “Use of this equipment violates the principle of fair chase because it gives hunters an unfair advantage over wildlife.”

In December 2015, the Federal Aviation Administration hurriedly implemented a drone registry system in anticipation of what was expected to be a huge increase in the number of UAVs received as Christmas gifts. The FAA reported the number of drones in operation increased from about 200,000 in 2014 to 1,600,000 in 2015 — with at least two million expected to be sold in 2016.

In the first 30-days of the online registration, nearly 300,000 drone owners registered their crafts, according to the FAA.

A provisional ban on drones was implemented by the National Park Service in 2014 covering its 59 National Parks, 350 national monuments, seashores and other sites. The temporary ban carries a maximum penalty of a $5,000 fine and six months in jail.

In California, a measure introduced in the General Assembly in March would provide the National Resources Agency the ability to develop regulations regarding drone use on about 1,000,000 acres of publically managed lands in California. By requiring the development of a unified regulatory system, supporters of AB 2148 say it would create a cohesive, statewide system of rules governing the use of unmanned drones on public lands.

Drones, tech advancements prompt action from commission