A national wildlife advocacy group is calling on Northern Rockies Regional Municipality to take a closer look at how it enforces its wildlife attractant bylaws following the recent destruction of a local black bear.
The Fur-Bearers, a North Vancouver-based animal welfare charity, sent a letter to Mayor Rob Fraser and council expressing sadness over the bear’s death and urging the municipality to strengthen its approach to preventing human-wildlife conflicts.
The organization said human food and other unmanaged attractants are a major factor behind interactions between bears and people.
“Studies show that human food, attractants and other conditioning factors are the major driver behind human bear interactions,” Lesley Fox, executive director of The Fur-Bearers, wrote in the letter.
The municipality already has a bylaw dealing with wildlife attractants, but the organization wants to know how consistently those rules are being enforced.
Fox asked whether municipal officers track complaints, warnings or violations related to attractants, saying the information could help identify opportunities to strengthen the municipality’s existing rules.
The Fur-Bearers also provided council with its Wildlife Attractant Bylaw Toolkit, which offers guidance to communities looking to improve local wildlife policies and reduce human-wildlife conflicts.
“To support your community, we are enclosing our Wildlife Attractant Bylaw Toolkit,” Fox wrote.
“It’s a practical guide to help communities improve wildlife-related policies and support coexistence with wildlife, including black bears.”
The letter comes as wildlife and animal welfare organizations continue to push for more proactive attractant management in northern B.C. communities.
The goal, the organization says, is to prevent bears from becoming habituated to human food and ultimately facing destruction by conservation officers.
