Global News - July 2007

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Bear poaching problem hits British Columbia

Mon 23 July 2007 18:15 UK — North America

Bears living in the Canadian province of British Columbia (BC) are coming under threat from poachers taking part in the illegal international bear parts trade.

A lucrative global market for bear bile and gall bladders is fuelling the problem and conservationists fear the problem could be worse than it seems.

"We know it continues to be a problem in BC, but the challenge for us is trying to assess how large a problem it is," Lance Sundquist of the Conservation Officers Service told the Times Colonist.

"Do we know about ten per cent of what is going on or is it 50 per cent?" he added.

Bear bile is in demand in some Asian countries as it is used as a remedy for a number of illnesses and conditions and one gall bladder can result in $45,000 worth of revenue, the paper reports.

After three black bears were found mutilated near Naniamo recently, provincial conservation officer Ron Heusen appealed to the public for information.

"When these things go on out there, there are no witnesses," he told the Times Colonist. "The wildlife that sees it can't talk about it and there's no way we can cover the whole area."

Officials in Kentucky in the US are also appealing for information after three black bears were shot and killed in the state within weeks of each other, despite being a protected species.

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