N.L. widens moose hunt to curb crashes

The Newfoundland and Labrador government willissue more than 2,000new moose hunting licences in a bid to reduce the number of moose-vehicle collisions along its highways.

Environment and Conservation Minister Charlene Johnson said Monday the province will also lengthen the hunting season for moose by three weeks.

The province is adding 2,154 new licences for the coming hunting season, starting in the fall. There areabout 120,000 moose in Newfoundland and Labrador's forests.

Moose which wereintroduced to Newfoundland in 1904, when four animals were imported have proven to be a frequent and often dangerous threat on highways. The animals can often kill motorists because a car or truck will usually strike the animal's legs, causing the body to topple on top of the vehicle.

The government said the longer hunt should result in more moose being killed.Moose season isstaggered in different geographic zones in the province, but all hunters will have greater access to winter hunting.

Johnson said the majority of moose are hunted within a kilometre of various roadways. A longer hunt, she said, should encourage hunters to use snowmobiles to head into more remote areas.

"What we're seeing is an overpopulation of moose in the interior parts of the province," Johnson told reporters Monday.

She said many of those moose, in the spring and summer, head toward highways as they compete for space and for food.

"Having those moose that never had a chance to be hunted in the first place ... I think that will go a long way," she said.

More brush-clearing

The government is also promoting other measures, including expanding its brush-clearing efforts along highways and broadening its moose awareness campaign.

"The best line of defence is a cautious driver," Transportation and Works Minister Tom Hedderson said in a release.

"We feel that if drivers reduce their speeds and remain alert, it will go a long way to help further decrease highway incidents."

Government statistics show that in 2007 the RCMP logged 447 moose-vehicle collisions. The government says 70 per cent of the crashesoccur between May and October.

At least four people in the provinceare known to have been killed in collisions with moose since last year, and more were seriously injured.

The government has been under public pressure to take action. Last fall, more than 20,000 people signed a petition calling for a wider hunt and greater brush-clearing along highways.