Photo Credit (left): Andy Wright
Each year, hundreds of these animals are killed by Trophy Hunters. Those bears that you saw playing in a stream during your adventure may have already been killed by the time you returned home from your adventure.
In 2007 a record 430 grizzly bears were killed in British Columbia, 363 of them by sport hunters. This alarming statistic raises serious questions about government policy towards these bears. The science used to estimate grizzly populations, and therefore set harvest quotas, is weak.
Government grossly undervalues grizzly bear viewing as an economic generator while overestimating the importance of trophy hunting, revealing its bias toward the hunting sector. In addition, given the grizzly’s vast habitat requirements, the health of this species will be a measure of our ability to make sound landscape-based decisions around forestry, mining and other extractive industries.
The Raincoast Conservation Foundation latest campaign to stop the trophy hunt on coastal BC is aiming to raise the funds required to buy out commercial hunting territories.
To date, Raincoast has raised approximately $200,000. The deadline is fast approaching. Please help to reach their goal of $370,000 by May 31, 2011. Learn more on how you can help here.
