Majority in B.C. Want Grizzly Hunt Banned: Poll
Majority in B.C. want grizzly hunt banned: pollKent Spencer , Canwest News Service
Published: Tuesday, June 10, 2008
VANCOUVER - Grizzly hunting should be banned in B.C., more than seven in 10 British Columbians say.
The new province-wide opinion poll was conducted by McAllister Opinion Research for the B.C.-based conservation group Pacific Wild. "The recent upsurge in environmental concerns across the province has ratcheted up the sense of urgency, particularly when it comes to protecting iconic species like the grizzly," Nicola Gentles, McAllister's director of research, said Tuesday. The poll found 73 per cent of British Columbians, including hunters, support a total ban on the trophy hunt. It was reinstituted by the provincial government in 2001.
When asked why they support the ban, 80 per cent said B.C. is one of the last places on earth where grizzlies roam freely; 79 per cent believed that the sport hunt is unethical. Eighty-five per cent disagreed with the claims of some hunting organizations that the hunt makes B.C. safer; 75 per cent disagreed that the hunt is a traditional way of life in B.C. A total of 629 people were polled in a random sample. It is considered accurate plus or minus 3.9 per cent, 19 times out of 20. "People around the world are appalled that B.C. sanctions a legal sports hunt," said Ian McAllister, executive director of Pacific Wild, who has no relationship to the polling company of the same name. "Alberta put a moratorium in place this year. Whether you look at this as an economic, ethical or biological issue, there is overwhelming support for a ban," he said. "People are fed up. B.C. is getting a black eye in the international community by allowing this to continue," he said. McAllister said 378 grizzlies were killed in the trophy hunt last year.
"That's a record number," he said. "Hunters pay $10,000 or more for a successful kill." He said grizzlies are the second slowest-reproducing mammal in North America. The province estimates there are up to 14,000 grizzlies in B.C., which has half of all the animals found in Canada. Grizzlies are the second largest in the bear family, behind polar bears.