Number and costs of nuisance bear calls soars

June 15, 2004

Despite claims by the province that nuisance bears would not become a problem after the cancellation of the spring bear hunt by the former Harris government, the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, (O.F.A.H.), notes that Ministry of Natural Resources, (M.N.R.), has received 3,800 nuisance bear calls already this year. In fact, the problem has become so large, that the Ministry has a budget of $5.3 million dollars in 2004 to handle the issue, and there is no telling how much the O.P.P. budgets for nuisance bear calls.

“The Province has repeatedly stated that there is no scientific evidence to suggest that the cancellation of the spring bear hunt and an increase in nuisance bears are related,” said Dr. Terry Quinney, O.F.A.H. Provincial Manager of Fish and Wildlife Services. “Unfortunately, not only does the science exist, but the fact that nuisance bear calls have increased every year since the cancellation of the hunt is proof positive that the two are closely tied. With thousands more male bears in the population, there is increased competition for food and territory, which causes other bears to move into nontraditional areas. This has increasingly brought them into contact with humans in urban areas where bears are usually not found. It’s forcing local authorities to shoot bears in the interest of public safety, and worse still, it’s only a matter of time before someone is going to be seriously hurt.”

Until recently, few M.N.R. offices maintained nuisance bear records. The records that do exist for the 1995 to 1998 period (pre-spring hunt cancellation) showed that M.N.R. offices received a total of 2,600 nuisance bear complaints. From 1999 to 2002 (post-spring hunt cancellation) these same offices received 12,426 nuisance bear calls, a 475% increase since the cancellation of the spring bear hunt.

The cancellation of the hunt in 1999 by then Premier Harris, not only devastated the northern Ontario economy, but set the stage for increased bear/human encounters. “The government cancelled the spring hunt in reaction to pressure from animal rights groups, not because of science. The cancellation was bad for the overall health and balance of the bear population, and is costing the taxpayers millions of dollars. At the time, the government claimed that the hunt was cancelled to protect bear cubs from being orphaned; unfortunately, based on incidents like the recent killing of a young bear in Campbellford, it appears that the exact opposite is occurring. The case highlighted the problems associated with budget cutbacks to M.N.R., increased staffing pressures and the difficulty they are having in responding to an increasing number of calls. By failing to respond quickly and effectively, the M.N.R. left it to the O.P.P. to shoot the bear, something the police were clearly not happy about doing. For the Harris government to claim that the cancellation of the hunt would protect bears, or that the increase of nuisance bears is not related, defies belief,” said Dr. Quinney.