I am writing to state my…

I am writing to state my concerns about the Spring Bear Hunt.

The spring hunt should be abolished. In the spring, bears are coming out of hibernation and mothers with cubs are difficult to identify from a distance as the cubs are often not with the mother as she forages for food. There should be consultation with bear rescue groups to better understand the number of orphaned cubs as a result of the spring bear hunt.

This hunt is not about community safety as originally stated in 2014. The evidence shows it does not impact human conflict with bears; education and enforcement of human behaviour, attractants and feeding will have the greatest impact on mitigating and preventing conflict.

Bear hunters are a small portion of the population, who negatively impact many people who spend time in the forest for other recreational activities.

Hunting a species in the spring and fall is too much. This benefits a small percentage of the population with a strong lobbying voice, and does nothing to prevent human/bear conflicts.