Calgary officials looking at solutions after 4 'food-conditioned' bears euthanized

More proactive measures, such as bear-proof garbage bins, education campaigns and diligence from residents,could help prevent future conflicts between bears and humans in Calgary communities, according to Alberta wildlife experts.

The advice comes after abear sow and her three cubswere euthanized following about four weeks of sightings throughout communities in southwest Calgary in October.

Alberta Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Services saidin a statement that the bears had become "heavily food-conditioned" after getting into unsecured garbage and compost bins.

"Food-conditioned bears associate people with food, which poses a serious risk to public safety," the organization said in the statement."It is of utmost importance that people continue to properly secure any possible attractants."

It's unlikely these particular bears could have been relocated at this point, says Kim Titchener, owner of Bear Safety & More Inc.

Once bears are used to an easy food source such as garbage or compost, they're likely to keep going back to it or to another nearby community where it's easily accessible.

"Sadly it becomes an ongoing issue, unfortunately, and one that officers just are left with not really much choice,"she said in an interview onThe Homestretch.

WATCH | Titchener says 'what we're doing is not working' when it comes to bear safety:

Wildlife educator explores ways Calgary could improve bear safety

2 years ago

Duration 5:13

CBC Calgary News at 6 host Rob Brown spoke with founder of Bear Safety & More Kim Titchener about the increase in bear sightings in the city and what should be done about them.

The solution comes down to getting rid of food temptations in the first place, Titchener says. It's important both for bear safety andhuman safety.

"We're creating all of these communities more westerly heading into bear habitat adjacent to the Elbow River, the Bow River," she said.

"There's a lack of planning involved here that is really concerning to me."

In a statement, Calgary's waste and recycling department said they encourage residents to only put their carts out on the day they'll be collected. In between those days, they recommend carts be regularly cleaned and stored in a secure location.

"Based on this current situation, we will look into potential solutions for areas that have increased and prolonged bear sightings," they said in the statement.

Bear sightings tripled in Calgary

According to the city of Calgary, there have been 93 calls for bear sightings so farthis year. Last year, there were 36 calls.

In both years,September saw the most calls, with 45 in 2022 and 13 in 2021.

One of the reasons for the increase in numbers may be because of the warm fall weather, according to Nick de Ruyter, WildSmart program director with the Biosphere Institute of the Bow Valley in Canmore, which allowedbears to forage for a longer period.

Another reason may be a particularly bad berry crop.

"Kind of their primary food source in the summer are berries, buffaloberries, and this year and last summer those berries were terrible, almost a failure," he said.

"So they look for other food. And bears are lazy, they're opportunistic, they'll go for the easiest meal."

Oftentimes, that easy meal is unsecured, residential garbage, he said. It could also be fruit from backyard trees, greasy barbecues, bird feeders, pet food sitting outside or improperly stored campground leftovers.

"The problem arises once they get a taste for that, they'll know that there's easy food available and they'll keep coming back," he said. "And most of the time, those bears eventually get euthanized."

Relocation is also an option, but itcan also be dangerous for the bears, especially this time of year. They might be placed in a more dominant bear's territory and get pushed out, making it difficultto find enough food and a suitable den before going into hibernation.

To prevent bears from becoming too comfortable in the first place, de Ruyter says residents in communities on the outskirts of the city should ensure any food or food waste is properly secured. Residents can also removeany fruit from trees in their backyard or even removethe tree itself.

He also thinks the city could look at providing residents with bear-proof garbage bins.

Titchener says the city could also work with the province to roll out BearSmart programming in impacted communities, which is a public awareness program for people visiting, living or working in areas frequented by bears.

"Interactions with wildlife aren't going to go away. They don't just exist when we walk out the doors and head to Banff or Canmore or Bragg Creek," she said.

"If we're going to continue to encroach into their habitat, we've got to learn to adjust. We're the ones that need to compromise here."