Stop the senseless killing of bears in BC

We are writing to express our concern over the record number of bear killings in 2023 by the BC Conservation Officer Service.  Our publicly funded government agency is currently managing our wildlife in a manner that is both cruel and inhumane, devoid of any form of accountability, and failing to provide the public with accurate information.

The graph and the data from BC Stats depict the ever-increasing number of bears historically killed in our province.  These numbers are much higher since many orphaned cubs left to “let nature take its course” are not included in these statistics.

A recent tragic event, the killing of an orphaned bear near Comox, has brought to the forefront the outraged voices of the public and their objection to the unjust way that our bears are being treated. The prevailing sentiment is “Stop the Killing”.

On December 21, 2023, a beautiful, orphaned bear cub named “Hope” by the public sought help from people. She had NO Mom and did not know what to do.  Instead, her fate was tragically sealed when the BC COS shot and killed her, despite available space awaiting her at the North Island Wildlife Recovery Centre.  The public firmly believes that Hope should have been assessed by an independent and qualified wildlife veterinarian rather than a conservation officer at the side of the highway with no medical expertise.

Yet again, only a few weeks later, on January 15, 2024, another cub, Hansella, was killed by the BCCOS in Nelson, BC.  Hansella had been orphaned the winter before and had survived.  She had been spotted wandering through Nelson over the past year, peacefully co-existing affectionately with people and never reported to be in conflict or presenting a risk to public safety.  Nevertheless, she too, was met with a bullet.  Public outcry was swift and robust, and a memorial was held for her.  People do not want their bears killed and their communities traumatized. These incidents are not isolated; hundreds of bears in BC are facing the same tragic deaths.

The two most recent events have brought to the forefront the voices of the public and their further eroded trust of the BC COS. The BC public is adamant that current wildlife management undergo significant reform to embrace compassion and accountability.  Changes to the BC COS agency are long overdue, and these are the concerns to be addressed:

Establish an Independent Public Board – to oversee the actions of the BCCOS.

Body Cameras – Issue body cameras to the BC Conservation Officers to ensure transparency and accountability in their actions and to help to rebuild public trust.

Auditor General – Conduct a thorough audit of the BC Conservation Officer Service to assess their practices and ensure compliance with ethical and humane standards.

Orphaned Cubs – Introduce immediate changes in orphaned bear cub treatment. Orphaned bear cubs should be transported to the nearest wildlife rehab center for assessment by a qualified wildlife veterinarian not affiliated or funded by the BC government. Conservation officers must no longer have discretion over life and death decisions for these cubs.

On behalf of the public, we are approaching municipalities for support of public accountability and oversight of the BC Conservation Officer Service. We all need to learn to co-exist with our bears by educating the public and offering solutions to promote peaceful, compassionate human-bear relations in our communities.

Ellie Lamb has been a CBVA Level 3 Bear Viewing Guide for over 26 years, an Expert Bear Behavior Educator, volunteered with the North Shore Black Bear Society as a board member for 8 years, and is a Wildlife Advisor on Pacific Wild’s Advisory Committee. 

Yvonne Gerard has lived on the North Shore for most of her life and is an avid hiker and cyclist.  She is a very caring, concerned community member promoting a successful co-existence with bears, working to stop the wildlife killing in BC.