Conservation officers part of new government branch

Conservation officers are no longer with the Ministry of Environment.
From April 1, they became part of Saskatchewan’s new Provincial Protective Services (PPS) Branch within the Ministry of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety.
Tyler Hansen, Maple Creek-based conservation officer, spoke about the change at the annual meeting of the Maple Creek Fish & Game League on Saturday, April 2.
The PPS branch unites conservation, highway patrol, Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Officers, prisoner transport and court security deputy sheriffs, and Wascana Park community safety officers under a single organizational structure. Including support and administrative staff, the new branch will consist of about 450 employees.
In a news release, government said it does not expect service delivery any of the agencies that make up the Provincial Services Branch to be affected.
There are no immediate changes planned to the insignias, logos, or uniforms used by the various enforcement agencies.
“A tremendous amount of work has gone into unifying these separate agencies into a single organization over the last six months,” Corrections, Policing and Public Safety Minister Christine Tell said. “The transition to the PPS Branch is a major step forward in our ongoing work to ensure the safety and security of Saskatchewan communities and people.”
Further work will take place throughout 2022 and 2023 to enhance services and ensure a consistent, collaborative approach to public safety incidents in Saskatchewan.
In the long-term, the transition to a unified structure will also relieve RCMP officers of their prisoner transport responsibilities. These duties will be fully transferred to provincial prisoner transport and court security deputy sheriffs in the PPS Branch, which will allow the RCMP to focus on their policing mandate.

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