REGINA -- The Saskatchewan government says it will introduce changes to trespassing laws this fall after a survey showed support for updated legislation.
The results, released by the province Thursday, showed 65 per cent of respondents said people should ask landowners for permission before they go onto private land.
Officials said they received 1,601 responses by mail, email and through an online questionnaire from Aug. 9 through Oct. 2. The survey was meant to gauge Saskatchewan residents on potential changes to trespassing laws.
"The responses show that many people see the current onus on the landowner to post their property as unfair and that, instead, the onus should be on the person accessing the private property," Justice Minister Don Morgan said in a release.
"We are now ... updating the legislation to clarify the consent requirements for those seeking access to privately owned land for recreational activities like hunting and snowmobiling."
Saskatchewan's Trespass to Property Act already says it is an offence to enter posted or enclosed lands without the consent of the landowner, to enter land after being asked not to do so, to engage in prohibited activities without consent of the owner and to fail to leave when asked.
The maximum fine is $2,000.
Other laws, such as the Wildlife Act, All-Terrain Vehicles Act and Snowmobile Act, also regulate access to private land by hunters, ATV users and snowmobilers.
The province said the different rules might be confusing to some groups.
Morgan said the survey showed that responsible hunters and snowmobilers already seek permission to go onto someone's property. Any change would only affect the small number who do not consider landowners' concerns, he said.
The province suggested rural crime and other reported abuses have undermined landowner support for public access.
At the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities convention in Saskatoon on Thursday, an RCMP officer who works with rural municipalities said addressing rural crime remains a big challenge for police and residents.
Cpl. Mel Zurevinsky said landowners should consider the consequences before confronting thieves on their properties
"Is your safety, taking the law into your own hands, worth a quad, worth a truck?" he asked. "Sometimes leaving things be makes the most sense."
Some Indigenous leaders have said changes to trespassing laws aren't likely to stop crime but could increase racial tension.
Earlier this year, a jury found Saskatchewan farmer Gerald Stanley not guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Colten Boushie. Boushie was killed after he was shot in the head on Stanley's farm near Biggar in August 2016.
Boushie was a passenger in an SUV with several other young people who had driven onto Stanley's property. Stanley testified at his trial that the gun accidentally went off after he had fired some shots to scare them away.
-- With files from CJWW
