Make sure your property is not a source of wildlife attractants as bears seek out food and prepare for winter denning.
COQUITLAM, B.C., September 23, 2024 – Make sure your property is not a source of wildlife attractants this fall as bears seek out easy meals to prepare for winter denning.
Guided by massive appetites and a keen sense of smell, bears will spend hours relentlessly searching for food sources such as unsecured garbage, fruit trees, and bird feeders in residential areas. This increase in feeding activity is called hyperphagia, and it helps bears prepare to spend winter in their den.
Help Keep Bears Away From Your Property
Bears are most active in neighbourhoods surrounded by parks, forest and natural areas, but they will travel long distances to access a food source once they smell it, especially during this time of year. Residents and businesses can keep bears away from their properties by making sure all attractants—including garbage, food scraps, pet food, fruit, bird feeders and dirty barbecues—are out of reach of wildlife.
Secure Your Waste Carts
- Store garbage, green waste and recyclables in a secure area that is inaccessible to wildlife, such as a locked garage or heavy-duty shed. Be sure to secure entry points such as garage doors and lower-level windows.
- Only place Garbage Cart, Green Cart and Recycling at the curb on collection day after 5:30 a.m.—not the night before.
- Always use your Green Cart for food waste disposal, as it is collected weekly.
- Keep carts odour-free by regularly cleaning them. Freeze smelly food scraps until collection day.
- If you are having difficulty securing your food waste away from wildlife, consider dropping it off at the United Boulevard Recycling and Waste Centre.
Remove Other Attractants
- Pick all fruit and berries off vegetation on your property, and remove fallen fruit from the ground.
- Remove bird feeders, or hang bird feeders high out of reach and clean up fallen seed.
- Keep pet food inside.
- Store refrigerators and freezers indoors.
- Clean your barbecues.
Be a Good Neighbour
- If your neighbours work irregular shifts, are away or have a physical disability, help bring their carts to the curbside on collection day.
- Take Coquitlam’s Bear Smart Household Pledge at coquitlam.ca/BearSmart and receive a Bear Smart decal for display.
- Share your Bear Smart knowledge and encourage others to be Bear Smart too.
Report Bear Activity
To report wildlife attractants, improper storage of attractants or wildlife accessing attractants, contact the City by calling 604-927-3660 or emailing UrbanWildlife@coquitlam.ca.
To report a conflict with wildlife that threatens public safety or causes property damage, call the Conservation Officer Service at 1-877-952-7277.
If you see a bear on your property or out in nature, please follow these tips:
- Stop and remain calm—often the bear is just passing through and will move on.
- Do not scream or run.
- Talk in a low and calm voice while backing away slowly.
- Keep away from the bear and warn others to do the same.
For more information about bear safety and securing attractants, visit coquitlam.ca/BearSmart.
Fines for Feeding Bears
Feeding bears and other wildlife is illegal. Bears may become bold or aggressive if they become too familiar with unnatural food sources. Property owners who allow wildlife to access attractants—even unintentionally—may receive a $500 fine.
More Information
Media contact:
Jenny Tough
Manager, Environmental Education and Enforcement
UrbanWildlife@coquitlam.ca
604-927-3660
We acknowledge with gratitude and respect that the name Coquitlam was derived from the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ (HUN-kuh-MEE-num) word kʷikʷəƛ̓əm (kwee-KWET-lum) meaning “Red Fish Up the River”. The City is honoured to be located on the kʷikʷəƛ̓əm traditional and ancestral lands, including those parts that were historically shared with the q̓ic̓əy̓ (kat-zee), and other Coast Salish Peoples.