Robert Torricelli: “the amendment before the Senate deals with the issue of trapping on Federal wildlife refuge lands. It recognizes the…”

“the amendment before the Senate deals with the issue of trapping on Federal wildlife refuge lands. It recognizes the reality that trapping has been part of the economic and cultural life of the United States for generations and, indeed, an important part of the economic life of many communities. But as anything else in life, there is a right and a wrong way to have trappings on these Federal lands. Overwhelmingly, trappers on Federal lands are using relatively humane methods of trappings that ensure the death of the animal so that there is no suffering. But in a small minority of these instances there are particularly egregious types of traps that continue to be used on Federal lands though many States have banned them for years. Most egregious of all are steel-jaw leg-hold traps and neck snares. These traps almost assure the suffering of an animal. The legislation before the Senate would ban these two specific types of traps and no others-- traps used in a small minority of the trapping industry and no others, and not for all purposes. Trapping for research is not included in this amendment. All scientific research can continue with any traps. Subsistence: Many Native American tribes that live off these traps-- live off the game they collect--should not be impacted and are not impacted. Facilities protection, or conservation: For any of those purposes, trappers are free to use whatever type of traps they would like.”