Five bears destroyed in Penticton

Penticton conservation officers destroyed five black bears near Wiltse Elementary School in Penticton yesterday.

B.C. Conservation Officer Service spokesperson Pamela Roth said the officers had no choice but to shoot the bears after they became habituated to garbage.

The bears had lost their fear of humans and were a significant safety concern, Roth said in an email.

The Conservation office has received several calls about aggressive bears roaming residential neighbourhoods, in addition to more reports yesterday morning about the five bears near the Wiltse schoolyard.

“These bears were not candidates for relocation or rehabilitation as their lack of fear of humans and habituation to non-natural food make them far too dangerous to the public,” Roth said.

She said the conservation officer service is stressing residents secure bear attractants around their homes to keep bears and people safe.

“By properly managing garbage, compost, birdseed and other attractants, we can prevent such conflicts from happening in the first place. That is a problem that is human-caused and avoidable. Conservation officers are patrolling for bear attractants in residential, recreational, and commercial areas in audits across B.C.,” Roth said.

It's been a bad month for bears in the Okanagan valley. Earlier this month, a West Kelowna firm was fined for aiding habituation after six bears were destroyed in that community.


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Steve Arstad

I have been looking for news in the South Okanagan - SImilkameen for 20 years, having turned a part time lifelong interest into a full time profession. After five years publishing a local newsletter, several years working as a correspondent / stringer for several local newspapers and seven years as editor of a Similkameen weekly newspaper, I joined iNFOnews.ca in 2014. My goal in the news industry has always been to deliver accurate and interesting articles about local people and places. My interest in the profession is life long - from my earliest memories of grade school, I have enjoyed writing.
As an airborne geophysical surveyor I travelled extensively around the globe, conducting helicopter borne mineral surveys.
I also spent several years at an Okanagan Falls based lumber mill, producing glued-wood laminated products.
As a member of the Kaleden community, I have been involved in the Kaleden Volunteer Fire Department for 22 years, and also serve as a trustee on the Kaleden Irrigation District board.
I am currently married to my wife Judy, of 26 years. We are empty-nesters who enjoy living in Kaleden with our Welsh Terrier, Angus, and cat, Tibbs.
Our two daughters, Meagan and Hayley, reside in Richmond and Victoria, respectively.

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