Alberta Grizzlies

Newly released information confirms that Alberta’s grizzly bear populations are below numbers considered to be sustainable by international standards. Today, the provincial government announced the long-awaited Grizzly Bear DNA Population Estimate Report for an area north of Highway 16 is complete. Combined with previous research, the government reports the population estimate of the all the areas studied so far is 581 bears, which remains worryingly low. Conservation organizations are eager to review this report and are calling on the provincial government to fully fund and immediately implement Alberta’s grizzly bear recovery strategy.  
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(Calgary/Ottawa) Grizzly bear populations are unlikely to return to their former Canadian range where they are now extinct, according to a report released by Environment Canada. The report concludes that the best chance for recovering populations in Canada is to protect habitat where bears are surviving today.

The report on the Prairie population of grizzly bears also identifies specific actions that are required to recover grizzly bear populations. Chief among these are protecting grizzly habitat against industrial uses, roads, and human disturbance, and reducing human-caused mortality.

“This report identifies what is needed to recover grizzly bears in Canada,” said Jean Langlois, senior campaigns advisor at Sierra Club Canada. “The question now is whether the Federal and Alberta governments will act responsibly to ensure these actions are taken.”... Read more »

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(Calgary) Human caused mortality of grizzly bears reached unsustainably high levels in 2008 according to data recently released by the Government of Alberta. This indicates the government is not taking sufficient action to prevent grizzly bear mortalities or to implement an effective recovery strategy. In response, Action Grizzly Bear is calling on the Alberta Government to take immediate action to reduce human caused mortality in Alberta. This includes reducing road densities in bear habitat, developing effective conflict prevention programs and dedicating a budget necessary to implement these and other recovery strategies.

“Humans are responsible for over 90% of grizzly mortalities in Alberta,” said Carl Morrison with Action Grizzly Bear.  “Although this is a discouraging figure, it speaks volumes of our direct ability to reduce our impact on bears.”
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