Over the course of June, more 亚洲天堂 Lake residents reported seeing bears roaming in the area, some of whom had little apparent fear of humans.

Following a bear encounter east of 亚洲天堂 Lake in late May, Glen Small, with the British Columbia Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS) said the number of bear complaints was normal for that time of year.

READ MORE: 亚洲天堂 Lake bear encounter a cautionary tale

But since then the official assessment of problem bear activity has increased.

鈥淚n my zone, my staff have handled 20-25 black bears this year until now, which is higher than normal,鈥� as Kevin Nixon Sergeant with the BCCOS for the Bulkley/Stikine Zone told Lakes District 亚洲天堂 on June 25.

鈥淭wenty to twenty-five have been killed this season. Thirteen to fifteen have been destroyed in the 亚洲天堂 Lake area. That includes Topley, Granisle, the Southside, and other areas.

亚洲天堂 Lake is slightly higher than the average, but I鈥檝e seen years like this before. On average throughout the summer and fall months my staff would handle 30-80 black bears in a year.鈥�

No grizzly bears have been destroyed so far this year, Nixon said.

If a bear trap is set out for a bear, that means the animal has has been conditioned to humans, and the BCCOS has already decided the bear will be destroyed.

Nixon explained there are a number of factors behind higher numbers of bear sightings, including more food sources such as berries and prey.

But the main factor behind problem bears is humans鈥� lack of caution with potential food soures that attract bears.

鈥淥ur biggest issue is we need to educate the public. [Maybe] they haven鈥檛 seen bears around for a few years and their barbecues or chicken feed are attracting them. People get relaxed. We鈥檙e getting bears that are conditioned to humans.鈥�

There is also a public misconception around relocating bears as an alternative to destroying them.

鈥淲e鈥檒l chase a problem bear to the bitter end but come spring time they get a clean slate. For a few weeks in the spring we鈥檒l relocate some. We relocate family groups. This year we relocated a family in Smithers and in Hazelton. In my 29 years with the BCCOS we鈥檝e rarely relocated them.鈥�

The conservation sergeant pointed out that problematic wildlife can be reported by calling the BCCOS line at 877-952-7277 (RAPP).

Blair McBride

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