While Squamish officials peck away at whether allowing chickens into residents’ backyards will also put out the welcome mat for wildlife, one thing is for sure — garbage does.
There are a few things in Squamish that mark summer’s approach. First of all, it’s the awakening people feel when they’re reminded that behind the grey carpet of clouds there is indeed a beautiful, big blue sky. Then there’s the activity that starts taking form in people’s garages, mud rooms or out their front door; the squirrel-like busy-ness as neighbours oil their mountain bikes, re-roll their kite lines or dust off their kayaks.
But the third clue that it’s time to shed the Squamish tuxedo — yes, that one MEC or Arc’teryx rain jacket — for a tank top is my least favourite. Knocked-over garbage bins.
It seems inevitable, but each time I see the food scraps, pizza boxes or milk cartons strewn across a road, I feel sad. It’s a checkmark against one bear’s odds of survival.
Bears are cute, furry and as a kid, I’d dream of having a pet bear to ride to school. But the 300-pound creatures don’t belong in the mix with traffic, dogs and people. And if they are here, it’s because we’ve been lazy.
This year that issue first raised its head around the growing Squamish Valley Music Festival. In March, clearing for a festival campground south of the North Yards neighbourhood was temporarily suspended after a black bear and her two cubs were spotted on the lot. The site is in the middle of Squamish’s industrial lands and bordered by a busy highway and family neighbourhood. It’s got all the ingredients of a recipe that makes Squamish’s WildSafe B.C. community coordinator Meg Toom wince.
That family of bears is there for one reason and it’s the same reason that saw 12 black bears shot in Squamish in 2012 and one destroyed last year — easy food. Black bears’ sense of smell is seven times greater than that of a bloodhound, transforming Squamish’s 65-gallon totes into a McDonald’s on steroids.
Last year, Squamish saw an all-time low in the number of black bears killed or relocated as a result of urban interaction. Four bears were transported to a new home and one was shot. This year let’s aim to put on the same crown. If we can’t be responsible for our own totes, how are we going to be responsible for chicken coops?
