WildSafeBC is completing its run on the Sunshine Coast for the season.
“Once again, WildSafeBC had an active year assisting the community with several wildlife conflicts throughout the Sunshine Coast,” said coordinator Erin Heeney in a release. The program ends Nov. 30.
Since the program launch in May, Heeney distributed information on wildlife conflicts, tagged garbage, operated information booths at farmers’ markets, and taught elementary students through the WildSafe Rangers program. That program reached nearly 400 students from Langdale to Halfmoon Bay, according to the release.
“The success of the program would not be possible without the ongoing support of the Conservation Officer Service, bylaw enforcement at District of Sechelt, Town of Gibsons, and Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD), our amazing volunteers, and everyone who has made an effort to prevent human-wildlife conflicts this year,” said Heeney.
The position, which has been filled for several years on the Sunshine Coast, is delivered through the BC Conservation Foundation and is partially funded by the SCRD.
The SCRD hasn’t yet decided whether to move ahead with the program in 2021.
During November pre-budget deliberations, a staff report had recommended that directors consider cancelling the program, since based on communication with the province “it will be highly unlikely” the SCRD would receive funding in 2021.
“The SCRD hasn’t initiated other initiatives with respect to deterring human and wildlife interactions, while other communities have. As a result they score higher in the grant application process,” said infrastructure services general manager Remko Rosenboom.
Directors voted to include the item in the Round 1 budget but asked staff to prepare a report to find out what initiatives have made other communities more competitive. Elphinstone director Donna McMahon, who suggested the report, said at the meeting, “I’ve never been convinced that the WildSafe program is particularly efficacious, but I’m interested in knowing more about what sort of measures the province thinks we ought to be taking.”
If directors opt to keep the program in the 2021 budget at Round 1, it would be paid for through taxation at a cost of $15,000. In-kind support through training and program management would still be provided by the province, said Rosenboom.
A year-end report is scheduled to be released in December on the WildSafeBC website.
Between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31, COS and Wildlife Alert Reporting Program received 324 reports about wildlife. They received 469 between the same period in 2019 and 274 in 2018. Reports in 2019 were the highest in the last five years, said Heeney.
Conflicts during the winter can be reported to the RAPP line at 1-877-952-7277 and urgent wildlife questions can be directed to bc@wildsafebc.com.
