Tri-City News Coquitlam
Better garbage control helps keep bears away
SUBMITTED PHOTO
A family of bears scavenges for food. Bountiful natural food sources along with better garbage control has kept bear sightings down.
By Sarah Payne The Tri-City News
Jul 13 2007
Plenty of wild food and fewer human attractants mean bear sightings and complaints are down so far in the Tri-Cities, but Coquitlam's Bear Aware co-ordinator says not all municipalities are getting the message.
The number of bear-related calls to the provincial conservation office in Victoria for May was just 26, compared to about 300 for the same month last year. Up to June 19 there has been a total of 113 calls.
"That's a reasonable number, and most of those are just sightings, not complaints," said Drake Stephens, who runs the Coquitlam Bear Aware program. He said it's a result of there simply being fewer bears in the area this year, along with good natural food sources in the wild and Coquitlam residents being more careful about minimizing bear attractants like garbage, rotting fruit and pet food.
But he said he's "disappointed" with Port Coquitlam residents who aren't following Coquitlam's lead.
"They've been terrible, putting their garbage out the day before. Some are putting it out at three, four in the afternoon."
Stephens pointed out that residents on Vincent Street, just off Prairie Avenue, are still putting their garbage out the day before pick-up even though a mother bear and her two cubs, which had been attracted to garbage in the area, had to be killed last December.
"I can see the difference driving through the two communities, it's like night and day," Stephens said. "Bears don't know political boundaries."
The provincial government this year cut funding to the BC Conservation Foundation, which runs Bear Aware, so that only 15 full-time co-ordinators could be hired when plans were to hire 30. Coquitlam also helps fund the program but it wasn't enough to cover the shortfall for a second co-ordinator who was to have started in May.
But Stephens said the Coquitlam program, with established support from volunteers and city hall (including increased fines for residents who leave garbage out), would survive.
Dan Scoones, PoCo's manager of bylaw services, said the city considered joining the Bear Aware program in January, near the end of its 2007 budget deliberations, but when the province cut funding for additional positions the city realized it was unlikely to have money for a PoCo position.
He said the issue will be considered earlier in the 2008 budget deliberation process.
"We have a bit of an advantage in that the bears have to go through Coquitlam to get to PoCo," Scoones added. "I'm not saying we're going to let them do all the work for us, but I can say we're very grateful to Drake Stephens because he's always been extremely helpful to us."
Port Coquitlam has information available in brochures at city hall and on its website, at www.portcoquitlam.ca/Citizen_Services_Animals.htm.
Port Moody's environmental technician said bear-related calls in that city are about the same as last year's.
"People are much more at ease and that's due to our education efforts," Rick Saunier said. "People understand what they're supposed to do if they see one, and we have the animal-resistant bins in Shoreline and Bert Flynn parks."
He added that a "very healthy" black bear had been spotted in Shoreline on Sunday, feeding on the last of the salmonberries and red elderberries coming into bloom, and emphasized it's not causing any problems.
"There are no nuisance bears at all," he said. "All I have are a few nuisance people" who leave garbage out the day before pick-up.
PoMo's enhanced unsightly premises bylaw should help, however. Residents whose garbage has been disturbed by bears, crows, raccoons or other animals will be fined $100 for the first offence, $200 for a second and $300 for a third.
"And I start early enough to drive through neighbourhoods and check," Saunier warned.