As a community in West Kelowna continues to grieve the loss of three 'food-conditioned' black bears, they are also speaking out to advocate for change in the management of wildlife living in and around urban centres. 

The three bears 鈥� a sow and her two cubs 鈥� were shot by Conservation Officers on Sept. 25, in the Rose Valley neighbourhood, "to ensure public safety" after being deemed "highly food-conditioned," with a "minimal fear of people," and were not candidates for relocation according to a Conservation Office Service (COS) statement after the incident. 

Before their death, the three bears had been highly visible in the community and could often be seen near homes.

The bears were known to have an affinity for unsecured garbage, compost and fruit that had fallen from trees, and were not fearful of people, said the COS. 

Breanna Scott, the coordinator for WildSafeBC Central Okanagan, which is a part of the B.C. Conservation Foundation said that in addition to receiving calls from people reporting the bears for getting into the trash, she also answered calls from residents who were stuck inside their homes as the three bears were lounging on their porches. 

Scott said that while these bears were not aggressive, they did pose a threat as they were not fearful of humans. 

refutes the idea that bears should be killed simply after becoming food-conditioned and habituated to urban landscapes and says that research does not indicate that a garbage-eating bear is inherently dangerous. 

"We don鈥檛 kill bears for what they have done but for what they potentially may do, which is morally wrong. or " said Bryja. 

"A bear鈥檚 failure to run away or respond to noise does not equate with them being 鈥渄angerous鈥� or 鈥渁ggressive," said Bryja.

She said that contrary to public perception, a bear who is fearful and panicked around humans is actually more dangerous than an animal that is calm.

Bryja is working to educate the public on how to coexist with wildlife, particularly when living in urban-forest interfaces in a period of food scarcity like what is being seen in West Kelowna following the aftermath of the 2023 wildfires. According to research into bear behaviour, the majority of bears who end up in urban centres are vulnerable and are young, old, sick, or new mothers, said Bryja.

She said that many of the current guidelines and procedures in place are based on a "fear-driven narrative," rather than data, are reactionary, and do not prevent bears from accessing attractants like garbage or fruit trees.

This year to date, the COS has received more than 76 reports of bears accessing attractants in West Kelowna alone. Across the province, more than 603 black bears were euthanized by the Conservation Office Service in 2023.

Despite the constant reminders and educational Bear Aware initiatives from WildSafe BC and the COS, people continue to leave attractants like garbage where the bears can access it. Conservation Officers are able to issue fines after giving a warning, but due to resource limitations, financial penalties are infrequently handed out when compared to how frequently attractants are improperly stored. 

On Oct. 8, fifteen West Kelowna residents gathered on Surrey Road, the street where the bears were killed, to grieve and share their ideas on what needs to be done to ensure a bear-safe future. 

It was noted that several of the homes on the street where the bears were killed still had unsecured garbage bins and bags of trash visible from the street. 

"I think what happened with the mother and two bear cubs being killed created a whole lot of trauma in the community," said John Waters, a resident of West Kelowna for more than 30 years.

He said that in his time in West Kelowna, he has seen many black bears as they pass through his yard or bumble down the street, and has never felt threatened or scared. 

"Never have they ever been a problem for us or any of our neighbours that we have talked to," said Waters.

"Nobody here expected that this would be the outcome for these bears. They weren't harming anybody, I mean they were knocking over a few bins and they were into the garbage but that is because it was available to them... If they don't have the garbage available to them then they'll go back to other resources," said Waters.

"The killing of those bears just seemed like such a ridiculous, simplistic way of dealing with perhaps a more complex problem that needed more of an integrated focus on how we deal with wildlife in our communities. We need to be more tolerant."

Carmen Harris, a director of the Glenrosa Residents Association and a member of the West Kootenay Black Bear Education Group, has taken an active role in organizing wildlife-based educational initiatives for the community. She said that preventing euthanasia of 'food-conditioned' bears needs to be a priority for municipal governments, including the Regional District of the Central Okanagan, which is in charge of education, bylaws and waste management, and provincial governments, which manages the conservation office service and forestry. 

"We need to change what we are doing at a provincial level," said Harris. 

She and other West Kelowna residents are advocating for increased education, accessibility of bear-proof bins and the creation of a bylaw that would make leaving out attractants 鈥� like garbage 鈥� completely illegal.

Additionally, Harris and the other residents who gathered on Surrey Road hope to see a review of the policies that resulted in the death of the bears. While the three animals had been repeatedly accessing unsecured garbage, the 15 residents said they had not witnessed any aggressive behaviour from the bears, and do not feel that they deserved to die. 

Harris said the first step to proper garbage management is ensuring all residents have the ability to secure their trash in a bear-proof bin. 

The RDCO said that it has tested several bear-resistant carts over the last few years and is continuing to search for an "effective 120-litre bear-resistant cart that is both user-friendly and durable against bear damage."

Scott, the WildSafeBC Central Okanagan Coordinator said an initiative called the Bear Smart Community Program is also working to "address the root causes of human/bear conflicts, thereby reducing the risks to human safety and private property, as well as the number of bears that have to be destroyed each year."

Through the initiative, WildSafeBC is providing advice to communities on the steps that need to be taken to achieve a Bear Smart community designation.

Scott said that after conducting an assessment in West Kelowna, WildSafe is recommending that the City of West Kelowna facilitate access to certified bear-resistant garbage carts for residents who are not able to store carts indoors and update bylaws to include bear smart language and policy.  It is also asking that zoning bylaws 鈥� which currently restrict the use of electric fencing 鈥� be amended so the fences can be used to stop bears from accessing attractants like fruit trees. 

The City of West Kelowna said, "Bylaw staff continually reviews its bylaws as all organizations work together to reduce bear/human conflict situations by managing attractants," in a statement. 

"This includes working in collaboration with the Central Okanagan Regional District and WildSafe BC on measures to limit bear/human conflicts. Along with bear-aware education and enforcement, reviewing our municipal bylaws and operations remains an important part of attractant management."

The Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO) and WildSafeBC are continuing to urge residents to take proactive measures to prevent human-bear conflicts by managing all attractants, including household garbage.