Mauling raises Ghost Valley safety concerns
Residents in an area where a woman was mauled by a grizzly on Tuesday are calling for the province to implement things such as staffed entry gates, bear-proof trash receptacles and public toilets to protect both humans and wildlife in the area.
The public lands in the Ghost Valley west of Calgary are popular with outdoor enthusiasts who enjoy random camping and taking their offhighway vehicles to the trails.
But Sharon MacDonald, who has lived in Ghost Valley for seven years, says there is a persisting problem with “unmanaged recreation” in the area.
“When I say unmanaged, I say it’s a responsibility for all people using the area … we need to practice wild-smart behaviours,” MacDonald said.
“We need to collectively manage these landscapes so we have good outcomes for everybody, wildlife and people,” she added.
She said residents notice offhighway vehicles veering off marked trails.
In addition, the land is often left strewn with garbage and human feces, “the sort of attractants capable of creating problem bears.”
The ever-expanding access corridors from clear-cutting is also increasing the frequency of contact between wildlife and humans, MacDonald said.
Without action, more bear attacks are bound to happen, she added.
Laura Hayworth and her husband James were camping near the Ghost River in the Waiparous area when she was charged by a bear, accompanied by two cubs, suffering broken bones and puncture wounds.
She was taken to hospital by STARS air ambulance and is now recovering.
MacDonald called the incident an “unfortunate encounter” but noted the bear was behaving normally for a mother protecting its cubs from a perceived threat.
Residents who live in the area are well aware of the bears — many of which use the area to raise their young — and know how to manage their garbage storage and how to keep their children and pets safe from wildlife.
“But once people enter public lands, there isn’t really a good system for alerting people to wildlife movement,” she added.
In addition to staffed entry gates, public toilets and bear-proof trash receptacles, MacDonald said residents want to see a more robust wildlife monitoring system, visitor numbers in line with the carrying capacity of the area and continued enforcement. Cameron Westhead, NDP MLA for the area, said one of the actions his government has taken within the past month or so is giving conservation officers the ability to write tickets on the spot.
Previously, they could only issue court summons.
“That’s a step we’ve taken to try to work toward encouraging people to recreate responsibly,” Westhead said. “These are public land-use zones, so random camping, even things like target practice are permitted uses in these areas and we encourage people to do these things responsibly.”
He said he has also brought the concerns of his constituents to the attention of Alberta Environment and Parks.