Deadly year for bears in B.C.

It’s been a deadly year for black bears in the Okanagan and around B.C.

In May alone, more than twice as many bears were put down in the Okanagan during the same month last year.

There were 25 black bears destroyed in the Okanagan last month.

Conservation officer Ed Sietz would like to see local governments do more to ensure the public cleans up and manages attractants.

“Once they do they become habituated,” Sietz said. “Unfortunately when that happens, generally the bear loses out.”

Dr. Ken Macquisten, the director of Vancouver’s Grouse Mountain Refuge for Endangered Wildlife, is calling on the province to rethink its year old policy not to relocate problem bears and other carnivores.

“I’d like to see a change in the Ministry’s approach to black bears,” Macquisten said. “I think they need to have more of a compassionate conservation approach which means the individual bear is important.”

Macquisten said the public needs to have more tolerance of bears as well because there is continued pressure for conservation to do something, which isn’t always fortunate for the bear.