In periods of severe winter weather (usually when freezing weather conditions are persistent) the relevant Government ministers have the power to make a protection order suspending the shooting of wildfowl and waders under Section 2 (6) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981, and under the Wildlife (Northern Ireland) Order 1985.

When is a suspension enforced?

The shooting of wildfowl and waders is normally suspended after 15 consecutive days of severe weather.  The criteria for triggering severe weather procedures are based on the state-of-ground data collected daily by up to 23 coastal meteorological recording stations around Britain. The procedure leading up to a wildfowling suspension is as follows:

When more than half of the meteorological stations have recorded a minimum of seven consecutive days of frozen ground in Scotland or England/Wales or both, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, and/or Scottish Government, informs BASC accordingly. The information from each site is gathered each morning around 9am and reflects the lowest air and grass temperature recorded that night. This combination has been found the most appropriate, and available, to reflect the habitat conditions experienced by feeding waterfowl.

If the severe weather looks set to continue BASC informs its members generally but particularly the secretaries of its wildfowling and gameshooting clubs, joint councils, syndicates and gamekeepers that, if the weather conditions continue for a further 6 days and look likely to continue, then a protection order suspending the shooting of wildfowl and waders in the appropriate country is likely to be signed on the 13th day, to take effect at 9am on the 15th day.

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