Call for Independent Review of Caribou Deaths in Maternity Penning Projects
Caribou Cow and Calves
September 1, 2015
The Valhalla Wilderness Society (VWS) is calling for an independent review of two maternity penning projects for BC’s endangered mountain caribou, after seven caribou died in the pens this summer. One adult cow and four newborn calves died in a pen near Revelstoke; and in a similar project near Chetwynd, one calf was stillborn and one died of unknown causes. In addition, two cows in the Chetwynd pen may have aborted. VWS is calling for a panel of academic caribou experts not connected in any way with the projects or with government, saying that the projects are failing and may even be doing more harm than good. The VWS press release points out that a long line of industrial and recreational green-washers is sponsoring the programs, which shift attention away from desperately needed new habitat protection, and the need for expanded closures to snowmobiling and heli-skiing. Full Text