In the wake of Bella Coola bear attack, some call for B.C. to revisit ban on grizzly hunt

An attack on a school group on British Columbia’s Central Coast has renewed conversations about the province's ban on hunting grizzly bears. 

B.C. banned grizzly bear hunting at the end of 2017 with the exception of hunting by First Nations for food, social and ceremonial purposes. 

The move to end a practice that attracted trophy hunters came after the provincial government held public consultations which, it said, found that the grizzly hunt was not in line with the values of B.C. residents.

On Friday, eight years after the ban started, the B.C. Wildlife Federation (BCWF) said that reports of grizzly-human conflicts have since risen dramatically. 

“With no hunting pressure, grizzlies and humans will increasingly occupy the same spaces with inevitable consequences,” said Jesse Zeman, the non-profit’s executive director, in a news release.

BCWF's statement came a day after a grizzly bear attack involving students in Bella Coola, B.C., that left two people critically injured and two others seriously hurt, according to emergency officials.

Insp. Kevin Van Damme of the B.C. Conservation Officer Service (BCCOS) said such an attack is “extremely rare.”

The executive director of the Grizzly Bear Foundation, a charity dedicated to the welfare of grizzly bears, was critical of the BCWF, accusing it of using "incendiary" language in the wake of the attack. He said such attacks are rare, and grizzlies are a keystone species that play a key role in the ecosystem.

B.C. Environment Minister Tamara Davidson said Friday that the RCMP and the BCCOS are working to locate the bear.

When asked if the province is considering lifting the ban on the grizzly bear hunt, she said “not at this time.”

Prior to the ban, the province issued 250 grizzly hunting licences per year, amid the then-estimated grizzly population of 15,000.

The BCWF claims that in the 10 years before the 2017 ban, the BCCOS received 300 to 500 calls per year about grizzly conflict. Since the ban, it claims there are 1,000 calls annually.

Nicholas Scapillati, the Grizzly Bear Foundation's executive director, said the number of calls around human-grizzly conflicts can "fluctuate," and noted the BCCOS may be receiving more calls due to its creation of a toll-free tip line.

The fact that more calls are being received, he said, "doesn't necessarily mean there's more conflicts."