The number of human-wildlife conflicts has declined in Coquitlam and city staff say they will apply to the Ministry of Environment for Bear Smart status.
If successful, Coquitlam would be the first city in the Lower Mainland to receive the designation and only one of six municipalities in B.C., joining Kamloops, Whistler, Lions Bay, Squamish and Port Alberni.
According to a staff report, the number of calls to the provincial Conservation Officer Service (COS) to report nuisance bears dropped to 1,195 in 2014, down from 1,565 the year before. Four bears were destroyed last year — three fewer than 2013 — and eight were relocated.
“It is expected that human-wildlife conflicts will decrease over time as residents adjust to the new wildlife-resistant residential solid waste collection system and new residents… become familiar with the city’s urban wildlife initiatives,” said a staff report.
The document noted the city’s outreach effort, saying numerous public education events were held and door-to-door meetings took place at more than 800 homes.
Staff also stepped up enforcement of people who aren’t complying with the city’s solid waste bylaw. A total of 642 warnings were sent to residents who had unsecured garbage and staff said changes to the regulations are expected in 2016 to improve enforceability.
The city of Coquitlam also received a large number of calls concerning bears.
Close to 250 calls were related to bears, making up 69% of the total. Raccoons were the second highest, with 52 calls (14.5%), while coyotes were the third highest, with 27 calls (7.5%). Ten people called about skunks (2.8%) while eight called about cougars/bobcats (2.2%).
Most of the calls were concentrated in neighbourhoods on the northern periphery of the city, including Burke Mountain and Westwood Plateau. But a city map tracking the calls showed bears were spotted as far away as Mackin Park in Maillardville and south of Lougheed Highway.
There were also 93 pest-related calls to the city in 2014, with rodents topping the list with 71 (76.3%) while birds and crows were second with 10 calls (10.8%).
