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Whistler can improve bear management says specialist

Report part of provincial Bear Smart program

Whistler could be the first place in the province to receive official Bear Smart status but there’s still room for improvement, according to bear specialist Wayne McCrory.

McCrory, who has been doing an in-depth bear hazard assessment in Whistler over the past year, highlighted a number of areas of concern in the resort.

His job he said is to identify areas where there could be a serious bear attack.

But he was first quick to point out that Whistler is already a leader in the province in terms of bear management and his recommendations are more focused on "fine tuning and tightening up an incredible system."

"You really have done a remarkable job," he told council on Monday night.

His top recommendation for Whistler is to hire a dedicated bear specialist to monitor the situation in the resort and stay on top of the bears all the time.

This could reduce the number of bear incidents he said.

To date, six bears have been destroyed this summer alone. Two more have died after being hit by cars on the highway.

Sylvia Dolson, executive director of the JJ Whistler Bear Society, said the need for that bear specialist has never been more apparent.

"We just can’t seem to pull it off with the manpower that we have in place," she said after Monday’s council meeting.

"I don’t want to downplay the RCMP’s support in all of this but we have to remember that they’re there to protect public safety and we really can’t expect them to be out there doing wildlife management."

Mayor Hugh O’Reilly pointed out that there seems to be more bears around town this year compared to previous years.

"I don’t know if there’s more bears but for some reason they seem to be getting into more trouble," said McCrory.

He highlighted interface areas in particular, those areas where the forest meets the built up areas, as prime bear territory.

These places are peaceful, secure and close to food sources. More importantly, Whistler has a lot of interface areas.

"You made the area very comfortable for black bears," said McCrory.

There are four areas in particular where Whistler needs more proactive bear management, he said.

They are:

• itinerant camping in green spaces;

• local playgrounds within 30 metres of occupied bear habitat;

• the school playgrounds at Myrtle Philip and Whistler Secondary School and;

• the Whistler Mountain Bike Park.

McCrory recommended that the resort take a page out of Canmore, Alberta’s book for bear management improvement.

Canmore has eliminated the problem of itinerant campers by creating a bear-proof campsite for them. In addition they have put up chain link fences around playgrounds, specifically to keep out elk as well as bears.

During his assessment of Whistler McCrory found local playgrounds were not far away from wooded areas where bears often wander or make their day beds.

And he would often see bears in the woods next to Whistler Secondary School when he walked there with his dog.

"The school has been put in really prime black bear habitat," he said.

Councillor Kristi Wells asked McCrory how the bear hazard near the schools could affect the municipality’s liability and insurance.

"Liability is a real big thing," said McCrory, adding that in every mauling incident in a Canadian or U.S. Provincial Park there’s a lawsuit.

Doing the work or having a plan to do it he said would put Whistler in a much better position for any future legal challenges.

He suggested posting big bear signs at Whistler’s northern and southern entrances to give people warning that they are entering black bear territory.

The other area to work on is tightening up the food disposal program. Again, McCrory said the current program is very good.

Recent upgrades to the landfill should ensure that bears don’t get through the fence to feast on garbage.

There should also be regular checks of garbage bins he said, highlighting a recent incident at the 7th Heaven chairlift where a bear got into two garbage bins which were previously damaged.

Another suggestion to reduce the chance of bear encounters is to make sure any plants near homes are not berry bushes.

McCrory told council about a problem in Montebello Estates where bears were damaging hot tubs simply because of the berry bushes ripening around the homes.

He said council may want to consider encouraging people to replace some of their plants or pass a bylaw to prevent fruit trees and bushes being planted near residential areas.

"Compared to any other community in the province or North America, we’re doing such a fabulous job," said Dolson.

"I thought (the assessment) was fantastic and I was glad to see that it echoed most of the recommendations I would have.

"I’m hoping that council will be supportive of the recommendations."

For the most part McCrory, who has worked on several government and private bear studies throughout western Canada, was positive in his assessment of Whistler’s bear hazard.

This bear hazard assessment is one of the steps that must be completed before Whistler can apply for Bear Smart status.

This provincial program is the only one of its kind designed by the Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection in partnership with the British Columbia Conservation Foundation and the Union of British Columbia Municipalities.

The goal of the Bear Smart program is to address the root causes of bear/human conflicts, which in turn should reduce the risks to human safety and the number of bears that have to be destroyed every year.