An ambitious plan to do a better job of keeping wildlife, such as now-dead female grizzly bear 148, which was shipped out of Canmore this summer, safe and present in the Bow Valley has taken a step forward.
Canmore Mayor John Borrowman and Banff-Cochrane MLA Cam Westhead are leading local discussions to improve human-wildlife coexistence in the busy and developed Bow Valley.
A two-hour exploratory meeting was held Sept. 15 in Canmore, attended by the mayors of Banff and Canmore, as well as high-ranking officials from Parks Canada and Alberta Environment and Parks.
As a result of that meeting, Mayor Borrowman said a technical group will now be formed to determine next steps for the various levels of government to work together; perhaps some form of roundtable.
He said the idea is to look at processes and options to reduce human-wildlife conflict in the valley, which includes everything from run-ins with bears to elk feeding, calving and rutting inside town boundaries.
Borrowman said this is not a new issue, but incidents involving female grizzly bear 148 and her subsequent relocation this summer shone a brighter light on the fact that something needs to change.
“There will be some tough decisions and sacrifices needed to make it happen,” said Borrowman.
“It’s a multi-jurisdictional issue. The animals don’t know what the boundaries are and that’s exactly what happened with 148.”
The decision to relocate bear 148 out of Canmore to Kakwa Wildland Provincial Park in northwestern Alberta at the end of July was a controversial one. She had already been relocated once to Kootenay National Park, but made a beeline right back.
Bear 148 spent 90 per cent of her time in Banff National Park, but the last couple of summers headed to Canmore to feast on buffalo berries, primarily on the south side of the valley in an area heavily used by hikers, bikers, joggers and people walking dogs.
There, she had daily encounters with people this year, including the last one when she came within three feet of a male jogger on the powerline trail by Peaks of Grassi neighbourhod.
Since grizzly bears were listed as a threatened species in 2010, Alberta has relocated 27 grizzlies and shot and killed one between Kananaskis Country and Cochrane.
As part of this new process, the Town of Canmore would like to see a reduction of food sources close to areas where there is high human use and implementation and enforcement of temporary closures when wildlife is present.
The municipality is also interested in working together to address issues when wildlife cross inter-jurisdictional boundaries, increase effectiveness of public information, and designate and enforce areas where wildlife habitat is the primary land use.
John Marriott, a passionate wildlife advocate, went to Mayor Borrowman when the province initially said bear 148 would be killed if she returned to Canmore, calling for some kind of taskforce or public discussion on the need for change in the valley.
Marriott said he’s encouraged that meetings between the various levels of government have begun, hoping that gives enough time to see some changes on the ground by next spring.
Specifically, he said, he would like to see increased public education, including signage, removal of food attractants in no go zones for bears and enforcement of illegal use of wildlife corridors.
“All of that requires more resources and hopefully the province can come in and put more money into this,” he said.
“If we have a few more enforcement officers out there, the message is going to get out really quickly.”
Marriott said while bear 148’s relocation is a sad story, he said he believes it can lead to change.
“Personally, I think 148 was a turning point for this valley and made people stand up and take notice of what’s going on,” he said.
“Maybe she’s the catalyst for turning Canmore into a world leader in co-existing with these big predators.”
Alberta Environment Minister Shannon Phillips praised Borrowman and Westhead for getting the discussion started, noting the Bow Valley is one of the most challenging environments in Alberta.
“”It’s an important wildlife corridor that straddles multiple governments, multiple departments and multiple concerns. It’s shared by residents, millions of visitors and incredible animals that deserve our respect,” she said.
“That’s why it’s important to work together to explore locally-driven solutions to ensure wildlife can move through the valley while residents and visitors also enjoy the outdoors.”
