The Details
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In August 2017, the Canadian province of British Columbia, took the decision through its government, to ban the grizzly hunt for good. But the bill, drafted a few months ago, included a clause that caused quite a stir amongst nature activists. The clause stated that the animal could be hunted provided it was used for its meat. Environmentalists and naturalists explained that this legal loophole risked making it very easy for hunters to still hunt the animals. It would mean that hunters could lie and say that they were hunting for the meat, and the authorities wouldn't bother them.
1. The survey: A survey was then taken, revealing that 78% of Canadians, are against the hunting of the subspecies of the brown bear. The bill has now been redrafted, removing the clause containing the loophole about the meat consumption of this large animal. The law came into force in early 2018. This means that the bear hunting season, traditionally starting on the 1st April, will not take place.
2. The decision: The decision was of course welcome amongst everyone. Canada's economy relies heavily on the health of Canada's ecosystems, of which, grizzly bears are an essential link. Also, other nature activists celebrated the decision, marking an evolution of contemporary societies, that no longer tolerate the hunting and torture of wild animals.
Naturalists believe that there are between 30,000 and 45,000 grizzly bears in the wild and 15,000 of them specifically live in British Columbia, a province on the west coast of Canada. There remains however, one exception that was not discussed. Canadian law allows Native Americans in British Columbia to kill bears for their traditional, cultic, and nutritional needs. But, this is a rare occurrence amongst these indigenous people, and would not endanger this vulnerable species.
