B.C. government won’t release photos of controversial wolf cull

"Such photos are used strictly by the provincial wildlife veterinarian for assessment purposes, and would not be shared," wrote spokesperson Tania Venn.

The B.C. government has photos of its controversial wolf cull in action, but will not share them with the public, Global News has learned.

Since the program began, more than 1,000 wolves have been shot to protect endangered caribou, but the Ministry of Land, Water and Resource Stewardship said images of those “operations” are classified.

“Such photos are used strictly by the provincial wildlife veterinarian for assessment purposes, and would not be shared,” wrote Tania Venn, communications director for the department, by email.

Photos are sometimes taken as part of professional standards for animal care applications or contract deliverables, she added, but are not always snapped when a helicopter can’t be landed safely.

The non-disclosure of the images was first raised by the Association for the Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals, or Fur-Bearers, which filed a freedom-of-information request to the government that should have produced them. No photos were included in the document package it received.

The Fur-Bearers filed a complaint to the ministry in response, concerned that if the photos don’t exist, the government is not adequately ensuring compliance with the program’s goal of being “humane.”

“If they don’t have these photographs, how are they determining if this work is humane or not?” asked Aaron Hofman, director of advocacy and policy for the Fur-Bearers. “These documents we have suggest the contractors have a requirement to send photographs to the province.”

According to the provincial government, predator management is “an effective, temporary measure” to halt and reverse caribou decline in B.C., and its implementation is “not taken lightly.” A ministry fact sheet states that in four herds in the South Peace region, wolves are responsible for at least 37 per cent of all adult deaths.