We are watching a mis managed industry...
Although the Auditor General voiced some criticism regarding grizzly bear management in the report GLG cited, she did not suggest that this resource was being grossly mis-managed. She did propose a set of suggestions for areas of improvement to be incorporated into the overall management program, and actions have already been taken to do so in some cases.
In October 2016, a report written by a panel of independent experts on the provincial Grizzly Bear Harvest Management Procedure, found that the Province has a high level of rigour and adequate safeguards in place to ensure the long-term stability of grizzly populations.
https://news.gov.bc.ca/factsheets/grizzly-bear-management
Pretty well every North American Wildlife Species has lost ground due to settlement and "
progress" over the past century. No surprise. Nothing is different for these bears in that case. What is now important is that the populations we have today be managed properly such that they are close to what the habitat can support - a term called
carrying capacity. In the case of BC's Grizzly Bears, every study conducted by a reputable team of scientists (we're intentionally leaving the self-serving pseudo-scientist anti's out of this) strongly suggest most populations are stable, and several are growing. All conclude that in much of BC, the available habitat is either at, or very close to supporting it's relative carrying capacity for these large carnivores.
In short, there ain't much room at the inn left for them to fill. When their populations expand (as they will under a no hunt policy) where do you expect them to colonize? Last I heard, they were making any more habitat these days...
The bottlenecks to increased population growth have been clearly identified as
not hunting but rather human activities that degrade grizzly bear habitat. Again, they simply are not making more of that these days. What do you suppose people might be willing to give up in order to do so?
Shutting down hunting is a Do-Nothing, Knee Jerk Over-Reaction by a socialist agenda driven government, desperate enough for votes as to twist public sentiment into believing this action will have any real effect. It will, bear effects that is. Not what they would have you believe however. For in very short order the latte sippers will begin to understand that when hunting is removed from the picture, the big bears become a much larger threat to human conflict, and we end up paying directly for an increased CO presence, simply to destroy the bears that hunters once paid into the system for the opportunity of doing so.
With 15,000 Grizzlies in province, the less than 2 percent taken by hunters represent the least of threats these bears face. Their being Iconized by the anti's may end up being the worst...
Cheers,
Nog
