UPDATE: The fencing has been installed! Read the article from The Province newspaper (BC)
You can also view photos of this project on our Facebook page.
Tomorrow (Tues, Oct 18), local animal protection advocates along with municipal officials of Bowen Island, will be working together to secure the dam at Grafton Lake in an effort to prevent a colony ofso-called ‘nuisance’ beavers from being trapped and killed.
Tuesday, October 18th
11:00 am
Grafton Lake dam on Bowen Island
This project was needed as beavers in Grafton Lake on Bowen Island have been damming and plugging a spillway connected to the municipal water supply. In the past, trappers have been paid to kill the offending beavers, resulting in the unnecessary death of wildlife which angered local residents and animal protection advocates.
Photo: Dead beaver in a Conibear trap, Grafton Lake (Spring 2011)
Photo: Bob Robinson of Bowen Island and Adrian Nelson from Fur-Bearer’s Assoc. talk at the Grafton Lake dam. On the left, a massive pile of debris left by beavers that municipal officials drag out from under deck on a daily basis.
Photo: This model demonstrates what will be installed at Grafton Lake on Bowen Island to keep beavers out (and safe from cruel traps).
Association for the Protection of Animals’ Executive Director Lesley Fox says, “Trapping and killing beavers does nothing to solve our flooding concerns for the long-term. Available food and prime habitat mean more animals will simply return to the site. Traps are also cruel and a safety concern for residents. There are non-lethal options to dealing with beavers and we applaud the community of Bowen Island for implementing these devices.”
To solve the problem on Bowen Island without harming the beavers, the group plans to construct specialized beaver-exclusion fencing, or a “Beaver Deceiver®,” around the area. The fencing, made from timber and galvanized wire, prevents the beavers from getting inside and blocking up culverts. Similar fencing projects have demonstrated a high efficacy rate and are more cost-effective when compared to lethal trapping.
Recently the non-profit group partnered with Groupon Vancouver to raise over $1700 to pay for this and similar projects.
Since 1944, the Association for the Protection of Fur-Bearing Animals has protected wildlife by fighting againstanimal cruelty and the commercial fur trade.
