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Plenty of bears to sustain hunting, they say. The Guide Outfitters Association of B.C. says it will fight any bid to ban grizzly-bear hunting in the province.
"Hunting has social, economic and spiritual values," the group's executive director, Scott Ellis, said yesterday. "Grizzlies are an iconic species. They're notorious. They're a challenge for hunters.
"The experts say there are 17,000 grizzlies in B.C., enough to sustain an annual hunt. They are giving independent, accurate numbers."
A coalition of conservationists and scientists has written a letter to the B.C. government calling for an end to the grizzly hunt. The coalition disputes government estimates suggesting the numbers are high enough to sustain a grizzly hunt.
But Ellis, whose organization represents 200 hunting and fishing guides in B.C., said just two per cent of the grizzly population is killed each year in B.C. (Hunters bagged 365 grizzlies in 2007.)
"Two per cent is insignificant. It is a very controlled hunt," he said.
A grizzly licence costs $80 for a B.C. resident and $1,030 for a non-resident.
Ellis said non-resident hunters must be accompanied by guides and can spend up to $10,000. Hunting and fishing are worth $120 million to the B.C. economy each year.
Mel Arnold of the B.C. Wildlife Federation called hunting a "healthy lifestyle," when meat is taken for food.
"There is a certain amount of excess in the grizzly population, due to old age or competition between bears," said Arnold, whose organization has 30,000 members.
"The hunt is not a free-for-all like people think. There are strict limitations against how many can be killed and in what area. Mothers and cubs are protected," he said.
kspencer@theprovince.com
Kent Spencer, The Province
Published: Wednesday, July 30, 2008
© The Vancouver Province 2008
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