PORTLAND – While the President of the Clatsop County chapter of the Oregon Hunters Association refuses to wear hunter orange, he is recommending that young hunters do.

“I wear blue,” said Wendell Locke. “But I do recommend that the kids wear hunter orange so as they grow up they will be accustomed to it and will wear it the rest of their lives.”

Locke, also the vice president of the Oregon Hunters Association, agrees that the bright orange colors are a good step in reducing shooting accidents among hunters, but he opposes the government regulating safety of the activity.

“You can’t do anything anymore without the government telling you to do something,” Locke said. “I just don’t want to get involved with the government.”

The latest mandate by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission to reduce vision -related hunting accidents took effect in August. The rule requires anyone under 17 years of age hunting game animals or upland game birds in Oregon must wear a hunter orange vest or hat.

In 2009, a 15-year old was fatally shot because a hunter had not properly identified his target, said James Reed with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

“We average about one hunting fatality and several gun related injuries each year,” said Reed. “We are still one of the safest hunting state’s in the nation for not having a mandated hunter orange law for all hunters.”

From 1990 – 2009, the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife received reports of 170 hunting related firearms incidents of which 32 resulted in fatalities. Over the past 20 years, Oregon has averaged 8.5 incidents per year and 1.6 fatalities per year. From 1990-1994 there were an average of 13.4 incidents and three fatalities per year. From 2005-2009 there was an average of 4 incidents and 0.4 fatalities per year.

But it is not just rifle danger in the woods that has raised public concern. A 59-year old hunter was fatally shot with an arrow in Union County in 2010.

Hunter education classes are also now part of a new aggressive social media campaign being conducted by the Fish and Wildlife Department.

“We are definitely using social media like FaceBook and Twitter,” Reed said.

He notes that most shooting mishaps occur when weapons are not handled properly.

“We see hunters swinging the muzzle of a rifle in an unsafe direction, not unloading the firearm when it is being stored in a vehicle, and the most common safety rule violation is not taking time to properly identify a target before shooting,” Reed said.

But he adds that many hunters are not prepared for the environment, don’t dress properly and don’t carry proper survival kits.

“We also see hunters not properly validating their kill,” Reed said. “When they harvest an animal they must immediately notch their hunting tag or it is not legal.”

While the state is moving ahead with hunter education efforts, the Clatsop County chapter of the Oregon Hunters Association doesn’t currently offer any such classes.

“But we are willing to finance one if someone is willing to put the class on,” Locke said. “We don’t have anyone on our board that is certified to conduct such a class.”

© 2011 Seaside Signal. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.