With winter hibernation for bears coming to an end, the Village of Sundridge is taking steps to minimize human encounters with the bruins.
Council passed a resolution at its March 12 meeting to hold a public engagement session to educate the public on techniques to reduce bear encounters.
“This is a public safety concern and there have been many bear sightings in the village in previous years,” Coun. Luke Preston, who introduced the motion, said. He later added he would like a representative from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) to be at that meeting.
“We need to be proactive.”
Coun. Fraser Williamson, who agreed the village has been reactive to bear issues in the past and welcomed Preston’s proactive approach, said that in addition to a public meeting, the village could also include bear management strategies in the municipality’s upcoming spring newsletter. He added the village could have an information booth at the Sundridge Festival in August.
Building on that suggestion, Coun. Sharon Smith suggested the municipality should add similar information tables at other local events throughout spring, summer and fall.
Deputy Mayor Shawn Jackson said the resolution is a “great opportunity to curb some fear with accurate education.”
Because of Sundridge’s proximity to the neighbouring communities of Strong and Joly, Williamson noted the bear issue is a problem for all three municipalities and all of their residents would benefit from management strategies.
Mayor Justine Leveque says if Sundridge can’t work out a collaborative public engagement session that includes Strong and Joly, it can be the sole host of the event.
Part of the education process includes getting the public to understand why bears venture into communities and a major reason is food attractants.
“It’s not the bears, but the humans we have to manage,” said Preston.
In the meantime, the Village wants residents to use the MNRF’s Bear Wise reporting line at 1-866-514-2327 to track the bears and record their activity and movements in the area.
No date for the public engagement session has been set, but it is expected sometime during early spring.
Rocco Frangione is a Local Journalism Initiative Reporter with NorthBayNipissing.com. LJI is funded by the Government of Canada.