Calgary waste bylaw may be amended to keep bears away

The days of setting out a garbage bin overnight for collection in the morning may be numbered in Calgary.

Calgary city council’s Community Development Committee voted unanimously 7-0 Thursday to bring a proposed change to Waste Bylaw rules before council come fall.

The changes to the Waste Bylaw would require people to set their garbage bins out no earlier than 5 a.m. and picked up no later than 7 p.m. on collection day.

It also calls for waste bins to be stored in a garage or shed on collection day.

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WATCH: Concerns over bears euthanized in Calgary

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Erika Varanik, the city’s waste diversion specialist, says the main goal is to keep bears away.

“And that is concerning because food-conditioned bears can lose their fear of humans, which creates a risk to public safety and wildlife safety,” she said.

“Unfortunately, last fall … those safety concerns led to a black bear sow and three black bear cubs being euthanized by Alberta Fish and Wildlife after they had been found to have been scavenging from waste carts.”

Four bears were captured and euthanized in Calgary’s southwest community of Discovery Ridge.

Griffith Woods Park was shut down for days due to bear activity. After a month of getting almost daily calls about a black bear sow and three cubs in the area, Alberta Fish and Wildlife said it made the decision to capture and put the animals down on Oct. 28, 2022.

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Related Stories:

• Bear and cubs euthanized in Calgary’s Griffith Woods Park

• Calgary’s Griffith Woods Park remain closed due to bear activity

• Canmore trail closed after surprise encounter with black bear

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Ward 6 councillor Richard Pootmans tells CityNews he believes the changes will make a difference.

“Eighty-ninety per cent of the people we’ve spoken to all agree that this is a serious morality issue,” he said.

“We can’t let our laziness or sloppiness of human-generated waste, which attracts the bears, which [led to] the end of the story that is four dead bears. That’s immoral in my opinion.”

The changes won’t apply to all neighbourhoods.

Municipalities like Kamloops, B.C, already have similar bylaws in place.

Meanwhile, the city says they would only apply to communities designated as a wildlife-affected area.

That gets determined by the number of bear sightings and advice from Alberta Fish and Wildlife.

-With files from Henna Saeed