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Bear deaths, rescues not so alarming

Editor: Should it really be such a surprise that we are above the average annual mortality rate for human-caused black bear deaths? And is it any wonder that our mountain rescue service is seeing a spike in incidents? Consider the millions of dollars

Editor:

Should it really be such a surprise that we are above the average annual mortality rate for human-caused black bear deaths?

And is it any wonder that our mountain rescue service is seeing a spike in incidents? Consider the millions of dollars that destination marketing organizations and provincial and national tourism agencies are spending on attracting visitors to our parks.

Now, as a comparison, how much public information do you see on education and injury prevention (for the sake of both humans and animals)? The economic success that increased visitation brings also comes with due diligence.

We have a responsibility, as citizens of Canada and stewards of national and provincial parks, to make an equally substantial investment in helping to create visitor experiences that are safe and free of trauma to both humans and wildlife. The death of animals as a result of cars and other human-related incidents should not be taken lightly – nor should the amount of mountain rescues, many of which are due to ill prepared tourists and are totally preventable.

Every time someone needs to be taken off a mountain – dead or alive – it also puts rescuers at risk and costs a great deal of money (none of which the user pays thanks to a unique mountain rescue service in Canada).

The Canadian Rockies are a beautiful place to visit, but the same beauty in landscape and wildlife can be deadly if we do not tread with respect and care. Maybe it’s time to write some letters?

Encourage shared responsibility from those that reap the economic benefits of increased traffic to the area? Simply working hard to get people here is not enough. We ought to do as much as possible to mitigate negative impacts on wildlife and the increased demand on our public services that respond when things go wrong.

Laura Lynes,

Canmore

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