Coquitlam's new Urban Wildlife coordinator is cautiously optimistic that there will be fewer bears around to get into garbage this year because several young cubs whose mothers were killed are no longer in the area.
The seven cubs are living at the Critter Care Wildlife Society Langley centre and will be released into the wild this spring where they will eat natural foods instead of learning how to get into garbage, a prime reason for why many bears get destroyed each year.
However, Drake Stephens said other bears may still wander into the Tri-Cities if people don't make an effort now to lock up their garbage and secure other attractants.
This is the time of year when sows typically send their cubs out to fend for themselves, he said and "when they get kicked out by mom they can become problems." The weather will also determine whether there is a good supply of natural food; if food supply dwindles more bears may hike down from the mountains into urban greenbelts.
To avoid situations such as last year, when eight bears were destroyed in Coquitlam, four for becoming garbage habituated, Stephens will be stepping up garbage bylaw enforcement. He has an assistant who will help him educate residents about the importance of securing their garbage and those who don't clean up their attractants could get fined $500.
Last year no fines were handed out, although over 90 warning letters were handed out, 193 Notices of Violation were issued and approximately 400 homes were visited.
This year, Stephens might not be so lenient with second or third time offenders and homeowners should be aware of the importance of securing their garbage and other attractants, such as compost, bird seed, pet food and ripe fruit and berries. Conservation officers will also be able to hand out fines and city workers will be scouring neighbourhoods looking for people who leave their garbage out over night.
"With extra resources and my ability to ticket, we're not going to be ignoring people," Stephens promised, and he also wants people to put their kitchen waste in the Green Can because it's picked up first.
As Coquitlam's newly-appointed Urban Wildlife coordinator, Stephens has other concerns besides bears and will be responsible for educating citizens about safety and responsibility around other animals that have made the Tri-Cities home such as skunks, raccoons, coyotes and even cougars and bobcats.
Coquitlam doesn't have as much of a wildlife problem as other cities, said Stephens, who recently returned from an urban wildlife conference in Cranbrook, but citizens still need to take precautions and cleaning up their yard of attractants is a good first step.
New brochures are being produced to educate residents about these animals and Stephens will be visiting schools, ESL classes and community groups to talk about living with wildlife. "We won't just be bear-centric," he acknowledged, but bear strategies also work with other animals, he said.
"It's a matter of being smart about knowing how to live with them....making sure you don't have places for them to nest under, and find a safe harbour for denning, you don't want to provide homes for raccoons and skunks or they'll eventually do property damage."
The bears are out:
Bear activity began this spring although, anecdotally, the call numbers seem to be lower. Here's where the bruins are so far this spring:
Westwood Plateau - one or two bears
Ranch Park - one bear
Drake Stephens said he's heard about bear sightings in just about every corner of the Coquitlam, but nothing problematic because there is plenty of new green grass and fresh dandelions to eat.
