Solving the garbage problems
Protection of threatened US populations
Recovering BC populations closed to hunting
Surplus grizzly bears


SOLVING THE GARBAGE PROBLEMS
Under the provincial Grizzly Bear Conservation Strategy, an intensive program of bear-proofing community garbage dumps in key problem areas is gradually reducing the need for agency control of garbage-conditioned Grizzly Bears. During the early to mid 1990s, agency control resulted in the death and/or removal of up to 140 Grizzly Bears per year. This declined to an average of 55-62 per year by 1996 to 1998.


PROTECTION OF THREATENED U.S. POPULATIONS
Contrary to recent claims by anti-hunting activists, all ecosystems shared with Washington and Idaho and all but one shared with Montana (where Grizzly Bear numbers are currently at record highs)

have been closed to hunting, for at least 30 years. These areas have been closed as part of three decades of cooperative Grizzly Bear management and recovery efforts between the various State and Federal wildlife agencies.

Garbage | US populations | Recovering | Surplus



RECOVERING BC POPULATIONS CLOSED TO HUNTING
Bear hunting is closed in all wildlife management units in the province where bear populations have been determined by the BC Wildlife Branch to be below the Branch's expected threshold.

As well, there is no hunting in all National Parks, ecological reserves, and any accessible concentrated bear feeding sites such as salmon spawning areas. These closed areas include: all of the Lower Mainland (Region 2) and all of the Okanagan (Region 8), and all the major inlets from the Fraser River to Bute Inlet. Those management units which remain open to hunting are strictly controlled and closely monitored by limited entry hunting seasons and compulsory inspection.

In addition to all these precautions, a built in "safety factor" of 25% for unreported human-caused mortality is included when the annual allowable harvest rates are calculated and males must comprise at least two-thirds of the harvest.


SURPLUS GRIZZLY BEARS
Studies in the Flathead in BC and in coastal and interior Alaska have shown that Grizzly Bear populations are capable of increasing at an annual rate of 6% to 8% or higher. In one study, the population increased at 6.3% per year despite an experimental harvest rate of nearly 10%! Population growth depends on both the birth and death rate. While Grizzly Bears may have a slow reproductive rate, sows are good mothers and survival rates are higher than for most other large mammals.
(IGBC 1987; Hovey and McLellan 1996; Reynolds 1996).


Garbage | US populations | Recovering | Surplus