Fewer bears destroyed this year does not mean the community is becoming more “bear aware,” says Powell River WildSafeBC coordinator Francine Ulmer.
Ulmer made a presentation to City of Powell River committee of the whole on Tuesday, September 13. She reported that only one bear has been destroyed this year, compared to last year when 38 were killed by conservation officers.
“Had we not removed so many bears last year, we would likely be targeting some of those this year,” Ulmer told the committee. “The fact remains that the attractants in the community will lead to future conflict if not properly managed.”
In her report, Ulmer detailed a number of incidents related to unmanaged attractants that caused problems this summer, including seven reports of chicken coops being being destroyed and chickens killed, five homes being accessed by bears crawling through open windows or doors and a large number of calls to WildSafeBC by residents reporting their neighbours had left fallen fruit, garbage or other attractants out for bears.
Councillor Russell Brewer said he would like to see city staff prepare a report on how Powell River can become a more bear-aware community.
According to Ulmer, communities need to take more responsibility for prevention now that the province has shifted its policy in how it deals with large animals such as bears and cougars.
Conservation officers will no longer relocate bears. This places a higher burden on communities to develop attractant-management strategies and increase public education, she said.
It also means a petition currently circulating in the community that asks City of Powell River to pass bylaws to relocate bears instead of destroying them is something that is not possible, said Ulmer.
While Ulmer has been advocating for more public information, some members of the community have taken it upon themselves to step up community bear monitoring.
For the past few months Ulmer has been using two “bear in area” signs, moving them throughout the community when the animals are reported.
Since that began, she has found that community members have requested more signs and have taken Ulmer’s signs out and relocated them without her knowledge.
“I’m very frustrated they are getting stolen on a daily basis,” she said. Ulmer recently added five more signs.
Councillor Maggie Hathaway said having only a few signs for the community seemed “minimal,” but Ulmer explained that the point of the signs is for them to be moved, by her, to show residents where bears are.
Ulmer said if everyone had a sign in their yard, the information would no longer be useful.
