樱桃视频conservation officers (CO) will have more time to focus on poachers and a bear management plan now that the province has deployed a new CO in Whistler.
"It'll free up their time so they can do more work around Squamish," said Eivind Tornes of the 樱桃视频Bear Network. "It will allow them time to do other work like look for poachers."
The new CO will set up a $60,000, three-year black bear research and monitoring program in Whistler. The province will also grant $7,500 to 樱桃视频to fund bear hazard assessment and a bear management plan that will support a bear smart designation, a title not yet held by any municipality. Whistler, Lions Bay and Uclulet are in a dead-heat to be the first community to get the designation, which is a provincial permit that confers special privileges.
"Whistler, Uclulet and Lions Bay are fairly close to getting a bear smart status and the provincial government looks favourably on communities that are proactive about bear situations. That's why they support communities like that with extra COs," said Tornes.
Under a cost-sharing arrangement with Whistler, the new CO will act as a bear officer who will assess and respond to bear-human conflicts and provide guidance on methods to reduce risk of conflict. The $7,500 grant will pay part of the fee for a biologist to make a preliminary bear assessment of Squamish.
"That's the start of the whole thing," said Tornes. "But they expect the district to put in money too because the amount is not enough. So we hope that with the budget that will be decided in March that that will be in there from the district to get that study started so we can work toward a bear smart status."
