Ethical and Environmental Hunting: Is Hunting Green?

Hunting is an activity reserved for gun-happy, rural conservatives. Or at least that’s what the stereotype is and has been for quite some time. While this outlook may have carried some weight 15 or 20 years ago, today we can observe that hunting is an activity that many urban dwellers, including liberal hipsters, are beginning to participate in. In fact, a government survey shows that of all hunters in 2011, 80 percent of them lived in metropolitan areas. The general perception that the majority of hunters are rednecks who live out in the boonies is not an accurate one at all.

In addition to the majority of hunters being from metropolitan cities, the number of people who participated in hunting has increased by three percent over the past five years after being on the decline before that, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. One of the groups responsible for this growth is the liberal hipster segment. But wait a minute. Isn’t hunting against a liberal’s code of ethics? Surely many liberals would still say yes, but greater amounts are beginning to say that hunting is actually good for the environment.

Is Hunting Good for the Environment?

If we are talking about a species that is overpopulating an area and threatening other wildlife, the answer to that question might be yes. For example, if white-tailed deer overpopulate an area, it can lead to increased car collisions, reduction of wild plant species and damage to crops, among other things. Therefore, hunting can be considered green in this sense. However, when hunting is targeted at animals that are endangered or the animal is being hunted merely for sport and not for meat or other byproducts, then one might argue that this type of hunting is destructive and not good for the environment.

Responsible and Environmentally-minded

Hunting can be a green activity when it is done the right way, and a range of people from the entire political spectrum agree. Although hunters often get a bad rap for being destructive and not caring about animals, they are actually some the most ardent conservationists around and are in fact concerned about the environment and preserving wildlife. Furthermore, many believe that the bigger issue may be the continued destruction of natural wildlife habitats, which can be more destructive than merely hunting wildlife. Many are taking hunting classes, including specific classes such as an online Texas hunter safety course, that provide firearm safety training and other hunting education.

Liberals Who Eat Meat

Just as not all hunters are hicks, not all urban liberals are vegetarians, which means that they have to get their meat from somewhere. Rather than getting overly processed meat from a grocery store, doesn’t it make sense to eat wild meat that is free from added harmful substances? Slate.com’s Emma Marris agrees and writes that eating wild meat is more ethical than partaking in meat from our current agricultural industrial system. That way you know from start to finish where your meat came from and how it was treated along the way. Looking at it this way, eating wild meat is better not only for hipsters, but for the rest of the population as well.