Too early to decide on full spring bear hunt, Sudbury MPP Glen Thibeault says

Morning North10:03Glenn Thibeault reacts to bear problem

Sudbury's member of provincial parliament was on Morning North to discuss the ongoing bear problem in his riding.Sudbury MPP Glenn Thibeault says people are calling to reinstate the full spring bear hunt before we even know it if will help solve the problem.

The province just completed a two-year pilot hunt in certain areas, including Sudbury.

"We've had it for two years. Let's look at what the data's going to tell us. I think right now we're looking at the cart before the horse when we don't even know what that data's going to tell us," he said.

"And then the spring bear hunt, and the fall bear hunt — and other management tools for the population — those are the things that I think are important to start discussing."

Thibeault said the best option is for people to keep their garbage away.

"Right now when you have a bear scratching on your garage where you have your garbage, the spring bear hunt isn't going to make a difference, right? We need to address the solutions and the issues that are happening right now."

The full spring bear hunt was cancelled in 1999, after concerns cubs would be orphaned.

Take our poll

Mike Commito, who just finished his PhD on the history of the hunt, said decisions to get rid of it or bring it back have always been political.

"The government really marketed this pilot as almost a public safety measure where they were suggesting that, by bringing in this limited pilot season for residents only, it would help reduce these human-bear conflicts we were seeing in recent years," he said.

While science is definitely still part of it Commito added, there is a disconnect where the politics are not going to line up with science.

"The politicians and the policy advisers will use the science to guide them, but it might not necessarily line [up] with the policy they want to implement," he said.

"And what the scientific community says is that's not true either. These human-bear conflicts are not going to be solved by increased hunting pressure. These are the result of natural food shortages from year-to-year. The politics do not line up with the science."

Commito said conflicts between bears and humans always increase when there are natural food shortages.

Bears becoming accustomed to human food?

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry's Bearwise program aims to prevent those conflicts from happening.

Jim Johnston, who was instrumental in bringing in the Bearsmart program to Elliot Lake, said studies show bear hunts do not decrease the number of interactions between humans and bears.

Bears are usually baited by hunters who use human foods, he noted.

"Most of the baiting occurs in proximity to most of the communities. A lot of the bear hunting is not done in the far remote areas," Johnston said.

"And, from my perspective, baiting with human foods has the potential to further habituate bears to human foods and bring them closer to communities, which could very possibly increase human-bear conflict in a nearby community."

One third of the bear calls to the MNRF this year have come from the Sudbury region.

The province's fall bear hunt begins on Saturday.