2 June 2005
Grizzly Dies After Being Hit on Tracks
Castle Junction - Canadian Pacific Railway is taking some heat for
the death of a grizzly cub in Banff National Park.
Conservation groups say grain seeping out of rail cars is attracting bears to the tracks.
The three-year-old bear was hit Tuesday night on the CPR line about two kilometres west
of Castle Junction.
The company denies there was any grain at the site and says a special vacuum truck was in the area
the day before.
But conservation groups say the truck doesn't patrol nearly often enough and is only good for major
grain spills.
They say animals are attracted to the small amounts around the rails and nearby rocks.
Parks Canada believes the bear that was killed may have been eating dandelions, not grain.
But park wardens admit grain is a constant lure to the tracks.
They say more needs to be done both on the rail lines and the highways to reduce bear fatalities.
There are only about 70 grizzlies in the Eastern Slopes area.
In the last two years, bear survival rates have been dangerously low.
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