VANCOUVER, British Columbia – The battle over grizzly bears in British Columbia has been rejoined, with environmentalists angry over a decision by the province‘s new government this week to lift a hunting moratorium. At issue again is just how many of the massive animals are living the western Canadian province‘s wilderness. Environmentalists maintain the animals are endangered, but hunters claim the bear population is doing just fine. Green groups have condemned British Columbia‘s Liberal Party government for lifting the three-year moratorium enacted by the former New Democratic Party government in February as it sought to woo environmental support before an election in this West Coast Canadian province.

Grizzly bears once ranged across western North America but are now found only in western Canada and a few northern U.S. states including Alaska. British Columbia is home of a quarter of the bears, which can weigh 450 kg and which, on their hind legs, can stand 3 meters tall.

Opponents of hunting estimate that there are between 4,000 and 6,000 grizzly bears in the province, while provincial biologists put the number between 10,000 and 13,000. Some hunters believe it is even higher. Faced with an international public relations campaign against the hunt, the NDP enacted a province-wide moratorium on hunting, which it said would allow wildlife experts to conduct an accurate count of the number of grizzlies. Some pro-hunting groups have estimated that hunting trips, sold mostly to foreign tourists, contribute $133 million annually to the province‘s economy.

The exact number of bears killed last year is not known. More than 230 bears were killed legally, but some animals were also shot illegally by poachers. The six-member panel appointed by the Liberals, which includes five wildlife experts from the United States, is scheduled to deliver its preliminary findings on the sustainability of a bear hunting season by early next year.

Reuters