On Wednesday, September 13 a sub-adult black bear was killed in Whistler by the Conservation Officer Service (COS) due to heightened public safety risk and an extensive history of conflict.
Between July 17 and September 13, the tagged bear was hazed on multiple occasions and relocated twice, due to behaviour including habituation to humans (approaching numerous groups of people or individuals in various locations to obtain food), accessing garbage and recycling, accessing a food delivery box, damaging and entering properties, and escalating aggressive behaviour towards people.
This is a very sad situation and an important reminder to residents that according to Whistler’s Solid Waste Bylaw it is the law to secure all wildlife attractants, this includes food. Food left unsecured outside a property, such as food delivery boxes, is classified as a wildlife attractant.
Additionally, bears have great noses and even washed recycling may have food residue or oils present, which are attractants. Bears will not gain food reward from these, but will still be attracted.
If a bear is consistently in residential areas please call the COS at 1-877-952-7277. Early reporting allows officers to use non-lethal hazing methods to shepherd bears away.
If you see attractant management issues please call Bylaw Services on: 604-935-8280 or email: bylawservices@whistler.ca.
By working together as a community we can help keep our community members safe and our bears safe and wild.
Please note: this is a photo from our archives and not a photo of the bear who was killed.
