VANCOUVER - A new community-based program, Bear Smart, has been developed to help reduce conflicts between people and bears, Water, Land and Air Protection Minister Joyce Murray announced today.

"Bear Smart is a part of the government's plan to protect public safety and preserve British Columbia's wildlife," said Murray. "Each year, the government spends about $1 million on conservation officers responding to thousands of complaints about bears. Many of these conflicts can be prevented through proper education and action at the community level."

The Bear Smart program is a partnership of the ministry, the British Columbia Conservation Foundation and the Union of B.C. Municipalities. It encourages municipal co-operation and participation by certifying communities as Bear Smart when they have met specific standards. These include identifying the sources of conflicts between people and bears, establishing education programs, and developing and implementing plans to reduce conflicts.

Pilot projects in Whistler and Revelstoke have resulted in declines in the numbers of conflicts and bears killed each year in those communities.

"The Bear Smart communities program is a great incentive for municipalities to adopt sound, proven management methods that enhance the environment while making it safer for people and wildlife," said John Wieczorek, provincial co-ordinator of the Bear Aware program of the B.C. Conservation Foundation. "I encourage all communities to establish the procedures outlined in the program to lessen their ecological footprint while enhancing ecotourism opportunities in their surroundings."

"The Union of B.C. Municipalities is looking forward to playing an active part in developing and delivering Bear Smart and in recognizing Bear Smart communities for their achievements," said Robert Hobson, chair of the organization's environment committee.

Bear Smart is just one way the provincial government seeks to reduce the number of bear/human conflicts. Bear Aware is a complementary program that encourages people to prevent conflicts by reducing the number of things that attract bears to their own backyards. The Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection recently provided a one-time grant of $290,000 for the provincewide Bear Aware program and another $10,000 for the Northern Bear Awareness Program in Prince George. The ministry also provides Web page advice to the public on how to avoid and reduce conflicts between people and wildlife both at home and in the wild.

Funding to develop Bear Smart came from surcharges levied by the province on all black bear and grizzly bear hunting licences and paid into the Habitat Conservation Trust Fund.

"The Whistler and Revelstoke pilot projects show that prevention and education programs can dramatically reduce conflicts between people and wildlife," said Murray. "This frees up local conservation officers and allows them to focus on enforcing the laws that protect our environment." For more information on Bear Smart visit http://wlapwww.gov.bc.ca/wld/bearsmart/bearsmintro.html online.

Media contact:

Alex Dabrowski
Media Relations Victoria
250 953-4577