DuBreuil: It’s cruel to relocate urban wildlife so far away

April 24, 2025: Conservation officers with the NCC safely captured a juvenile bear in Kanata North. Photo by Ashley Fraser /POSTMEDIAArticle content

A young bear was taken from Kanata North last month and dumped 200 km away, at a site chosen by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, in a Wildlife Management Unit where the spring bear hunt is underway. The incident exposes the failure of the City of Ottawa’s Wildlife Strategy.

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Ottawa’s footprint includes significant natural areas such as the 20,000-hectare National Capital Greenbelt, as well as extensive rural lands that are home to exceptional biodiversity, including bears, so there was no need to relocate the bear so far away.

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As happens each year, bears coming out of hibernation are hungry and looking for an easy nearby food source such as backyard bird feeders or uncontained garbage before their traditional food of wild berries is available.

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It is neither progressive nor humane to relocate a young bear for what is a short-term and predictable seasonal issue that could be avoided with homeowner and community education. And certainly not to relocate the bear to an unfamiliar distant county where it will encounter even more competition for the same limited food supply, along with facing a spring bear hunt that is underway in that region. All of this reduces its chances of survival.

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So where is the city’s plan for a progressive response when the occasional large wild mammal wanders from adjacent natural habitat into a neighbourhood?

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The city has had a Large Wild Mammal Response Protocol for more than two decades but, after the unnecessary killing of animals and the inappropriate relocation of others, it has been widely criticized as secretive and unaccountable.

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Where is the city’s plan for a progressive response when the occasional large wild mammal wanders from adjacent natural habitat into a neighbourhood?Article content

Wildlife, environment and community organizations, along with many residents, successfully argued for change, resulting in Ottawa Council in June 2024 approving a revised “Wildlife Strategy that reflects modern-day practices to coexist with wildlife in our city”.

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It included the hiring of a wildlife resources coordinator who was to be responsible for the Large Wild Mammal Response Protocol. So, what role is this person going to have in moving beyond controversial past practices and putting together a transparent protocol that assists the public and wildlife?

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The National Capital Commission is the proper authority to respond, as it employs experienced conservation officers who are well-trained and equipped to assess, treat if necessary, and handle large wild mammals. Most important, given that these animals come from or are near NCC managed lands, the NCC should determine, if relocation is necessary, the most appropriate nearest natural area.