Most northern B.C. residents consider wildlife their backyard, and in this part of Canada, people are expected to understand how to co-exist with the wildlife that surrounds us.
However co-existence doesn't always go smoothly.
The area surrounding Prince George receives approximately 1,000 bear complaints every year largely due to unmanaged attractants, like garbage, fruit trees and bird feeders. On average, 50 black bears are destroyed annually as a result.
So individuals, non-profit groups and entire government branches are dedicated to educating Canadians living in bear habitat how to help save the animals' lives.
"It's a blemish on Canada," said Doreen McCrindle, Edmonton-based organizer of Help Save the BC Black Bears effort. "We have this wonderful wilderness... yet we aren't treating them with the respect they deserve."
McCrindle was made aware of the black bear conflict management problems in B.C. after a dozen of the animals were found living around a field of marijuana near Christina Lake in 2010. There ended up being 1,860 complaints over the situation, leading to 84 getting destroyed.
McCrindle believes destroying the bears instead of relocating them "is not a solution, it's the cheapest answer."
Her organization has discussed with conservation officers the option of installing temporary feeding stations, beginning at property lines and retreating back into the wilderness.
"Bears are opportunistic feeders, they will look for the easiest route to food. They prefer to be lazy, they'll go wherever is easiest. Especially in the Fall, when they go into their hyper-feeding when they ingest as many calories as possible to fatten up for hibernation," said McCrindle.
However debate still rages over how to control bears that are deemed dangerous. Even the most sympathetic among bear advocates know there are limits.
"I can certainly understand on a case-by-case basis if a bear is particularly aggressive, there may be instances where the animals have to be shot, I can't be Pollyannic about it," said McCrindle.
Since 2002, there have been three fatal attacks across the province. However poor bear aware practices can lead to bear-human conflict, and that's when such attacks can happen.
'MASSIVE BEAR PROBLEMS' IN P.G.
The Northern Bear Awareness Program, under the direction of the Omineca Bear Human Conflict Committee, was incorporated in 2008.
An educational program founded in Prince George 12 years ago, according to Rachel Caira, Northern Bear Awareness community co-ordinator, it was established because there was "massive bear problems here and there wasn't enough education on what to do with attractants."
"It's important especially with a lot of people moving here from the city they don't realize bears can end up right downtown," said Caira. "The Fraser River is right there, so it's prime habitat. We are always going to have wildlife."
Typically, residents who live on the more isolated outskirts of town are more bear aware. It's the people who live closer to town, or in town, who don't always know about the bear population, said Caira.
She added that one of the problems with managing the black bears in Prince George is the lack of conservation officers in the area.
Currently there are four officers responsible for the territory of Prince George north to MacKenzie, Vanderhoof, north of Quesnel and east to the Alberta border.
"It's difficult when you have so few members," she said.
FED NOT NECESSARILY DEAD
The B.C. ministry of environment, conservation officer services states on their website: "A fed bear is a dead bear. Most people are not aware of their role in the destruction of bears... In most cases, problem bears must be destroyed because they damage property and are a potential threat to human safety."
But Lynn Rogers, Ph.D, principal biologist for the The Wildlife Research Institute believes that's not necessarily so.
"I wonder why [conservation officers] think they have to shoot them," said Rogers, who has spent 42 years learning about their behaviour.
Rogers's research suggests the biggest motivator is the animal's access to food. As omnivores they will feed on whatever is available: insects, nuts, berries, grasses and other vegetation as well as meat, such as deer or moose and salmon.
"One thing makes them nuisance, food. Anything else we throw on top of that to is clouding the issue," said Rogers.
Based on his research, the term habituated is often misused by wildlife management officials.
"It's usually used to suggest they are attracted to something. The term gets confused with food conditioned, which means the animals have come to expect food in a certain circumstance."
If a bear is hungry and there isn't anything to eat in their natural environment, it doesn't matter how far down the list of preferred foods, they will eat whatever they can find, which is when interacting with people becomes an issue.
When a bear goes to that extreme, it's simply deemed food conditioned, said Rogers.
THE DIVERSIONARY FOOD TACTIC
Rogers said studies show putting food out at a designated site - a practice known as diversionary feeding - can keep black bears away from populated areas.
Typically, during summers there is limited natural food and the animals will be attracted to garbage and food left unattended.
To curb that tendency, wildlife officials could set up a food sites, using a technique called diversionary feeding, to keep them away from any populated areas.
"If people want to co-exist with bears, diversionary feeding is the tool," said Rogers.
"The Conservation Officer Service has consulted other ministry experts regarding diversionary feeding, and it has been determined that it is not feasible in this instance," said Terry Lake, minister of environment.
"Diversionary feeding does not provide an opportunity for the bears to return to their natural environment and natural food sources; furthermore, it changes movement patterns associated with natural food sources and concentrates the animals in an area, has a number of negative consequences."
The ministry said diversionary feeding also enhances cub production and survival rates create a higher than natural population density, potentially leading to further conflict between the animals and humans.
They go on to caution the plan may pull in bears who are not food conditioned, therefore creating the potential for increased conflict both with humans and also with the bear population itself.
"We know food can lead bears into trouble but [the question should be] can it lead them out of trouble?" asked Rogers.
GET BEAR SMART
The Northern Bear Awareness with the city of Prince George have developed a plan to make Prince George a more bear smart community.
Outlined in the plan, written in 2009 includes six steps to achieve the goal:
1. Prepare a bear hazard assessment.
2. Prepare a human-bear conflict management plan designed to address the bear hazards and land-use conflicts identified in the hazard assessment.
3. Revise planning and decision-making documents to be consistent with the human-bear conflict management plan.
4. Implement a continuing education program directed at all sectors of the community.
5. Develop and maintain a bear-proof municipal solid waste management system.
6. Implement Bear Smart bylaws prohibiting the provision of food to bears as a result of intent, neglect, or irresponsible management of attractants.
"We can minimize attracting bears into the city by doing our part as homeowners. Look after your garbage, pick your apple trees, turn your compost and then at least we won't be encouraging them to come in for whatever reason," said Caira.
