Bear season is upon us and Meg Toom, the Squamish Bear Aware community coordinator, says she hopes residents will follow the lead of the Downtown Squamish Community Garden with regard to composting.
A partnership between Squamish CAN, the District of Squamish (DOS) and Bear Aware brought about a new sign designed to educate locals about how to compost effectively with wildlife all around us.
"CAN approached us a few years ago saying they wanted to put in a community garden and just required some guidance because they wanted to include composting," she said. "I sat down with them and we decided to put up a sign. Rod MacLeod from the District of Squamish got involved and provided some budgeting for the sign and it was just installed."
Toom said the sign gives tips for composting in bear country and ways to avoid attracting bears and other wildlife. She offered a few tips to help keep the bears away.
"Placement of composting is very important," she said. "Never put the bin where you might surprise a bear, like near an entranceway or by a playground. It should be in a visible spot. Another key is odour. If it smells, you may attract bears but also smaller rodents and then that can lead to the bigger predators coming around."
She said the best way to avoid odours from kitchen compost is to layer them with items like grass clippings and leaves to help smother the smell. She noted sometimes it can be trial and error with placement of a compost bin, but make sure to always keep the bin away from other potential attractants like garbage bins.
The advice to avoid bear conflicts is a timely message after the recent euthanization of a sow after a collision with a car last Wednesday (April 24).
"We had a female bear hit near Highway 99 and the Adventure Centre and she had to be euthanized," she said, noting the bear was badly injured but not dead after the impact. "There was a yearling hanging around who spent the night in a trap and relocated and released on Thursday (April 25) afternoon."
It was the second major bear incident within the DOS of the week. On Tuesday (April 23), another yearling was hit and killed. Toom said drivers should respect speed limits and stay alert, especially late at night.
"My advice would be to slow down," she said, noting the area near the Adventure Centre seems to be a hot spot for animal encounters. "The limit is 70 around there but you're hard pressed to see people doing that. You should always scan the horizon and anticipate. And it's not just bears but also elk that have been seen in that area."
For more information, visit www.bearaware.bc.ca.
