After 18-year moratorium, Alberta grizzly bear hunt to resume

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The province says it’s ending Alberta’s 18-year moratorium on grizzly bear hunting, with plans to limit the activity to culling a limited number of problem animals.

But allowing the bears to be hunted goes against the views of some wildlife biologists — including the government’s own — who say research runs counter to it. It has also attracted the ire of conservationists who fear the practice could reverse progress made in the recovery of the grizzly population.

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“Hunting is not an acceptable management approach for a threatened species,” said Devon Earl, AWA conservation specialist, noting the animals were given that designation in 2010.

“Grizzly bears have a very slow reproductive rate, and trophy hunting could undo all the recovery of the last decade.”

The move under the Wildlife Act was made in a June 17 ministerial order by Forestry and Parks Minister Todd Loewen, which allows him to grant authorization to kill grizzlies if they’re determined by wildlife officers to be habituated or to have killed livestock.

Only bears not with cubs can be hunted, and the animals must also be in conflict with humans or in “an area of concern,” states the order.

“Despite its status as a threatened animal, the hunting of Ursus arctos (Grizzly Bear) is permitted under section 53.1 (of the Wildlife Act),” it says.

The government says so-called wildlife management responders to carry out the hunting will be selected from those applying through the AlbertaRELM licensing and draw system.

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It comes as the bears’ threatened species status is under review by the province, a process that has been delayed by recent turbulence within government ministries, say sources.

That review and the new hunt have been driven at least partly by the apparent success of the recovery plan that’s seen the grizzly population grow from between 700 and 800 in 2010, to between 900 and 1,150 now, including those in the national parks.

Some government officials and wildlife biologists contend that’s led to an increase in grizzly-human conflict in recent years.

Last fall, expert sources within the government said following the fatal grizzly mauling of a Lethbridge couple that they weren’t actively working on resuming a grizzly hunt and didn’t recommend one.

Retired longtime provincial wildlife officer and bear safety consultant John Clarke has said hunting the bears isn’t a solution, insisting wildlife officers have considerable leeway in euthanizing problem bears.

In an email, Loewen’s press secretary said the government is responding to the concerns of farmers and ranchers who have lost livestock to grizzlies and fear for their own safety.

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Pam Davidson also said that since 2005, eight people have been killed by grizzly bears, and another 62 mauled.

“In addition to grizzly bear-human conflict, there has been 897 livestock losses since 2016, which has greatly impacted Alberta farmers,” she said.

“Through this new network, agricultural producers, rural Albertans and others experiencing negative wildlife interactions are now able to be called upon by wildlife officers (to shoot grizzlies).”

Davidson didn’t say how many grizzlies are forecast to be culled.

‘This seems like a short-sighted decision’

The group Exposed Wildlife Conservancy questioned the involvement of non-professional hunters and expressed concern the move will provide incentives for people to habituate bears so they can trophy-hunt them.

“This seems like a short-sighted decision intended to appease Minister Loewen’s ties to the guide-outfitting and trophy hunting industries, and lacks any public integrity,” said the group’s co-founder John Marriott.

“Why wasn’t the public consulted on this? Why weren’t grizzly bear researchers involved in this decision?”

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He also said the term “area of concern” in the ministerial order is overly vague and “could apply to anywhere bears and people overlap.”

Not replaced since his retirement two years ago was the province’s only human-wildlife conflict specialist, Jay Honeyman, whose preventive work would be preferential to a hunt, said Marriott.

Honeyman said the province’s grizzly recovery plan states there should be one large carnivore biologist who works specifically to mitigate bear-human conflict in each of Alberta’s seven bear management areas, but since his retirement, there’s now none.

“I don’t know why I haven’t been replaced, what we’re talking about now is more reactive — there should be more proactive systems in place, then we wouldn’t be needing to even talk about this stuff,” said Honeyman, whose work included bear-proofing properties.

“We were making a lot of headway, but I guess the government’s priorities are different.”

He said questions remain about who would be allowed to hunt and in how many and exactly what types of circumstances.

“It’s a little open-ended … there are obviously some justifiable concerns about it,” said Honeyman.

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Echoing those views were NDP environment and tourism critic Sarah Elmeligi, who called the province’s approach unscientific.

“Killing bears doesn’t reduce conflict, it reduces populations. How can that be acceptable when at the same time we are committed to recovering the population?” said Elmeligi, a wildlife biologist, adding the most recent study shows grizzlies in Alberta number between 856 and 973.

But a member of the Spring Point Hutterite colony near Fort Macleod that had nearly two dozen sheep slaughtered by grizzly bears last May applauded the government’s move.

“If they’re killing (livestock), you should be able to shoot them,” said Mike Walter, adding the bears that attacked his sheep were relocated by wildlife officers.

Grizzlies have become far more common in his area in recent years, with some members of his colony arming themselves when they go into nearby wilderness, he said.

“It was rare 20 years ago to see one,” said Walter.

BKaufmann@postmedia.com

X: @BillKaufmannjrn

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