Manitoba bear rescue concerned about proposed quarry

An organization that rescues orphaned and injured black bears is worried a new quarry development will force them to close their doors. Jon Hendricks explains.

An organization that rescues abandoned or orphaned black bear cubs in Manitoba is sounding the alarm over a proposed development near its rescue facility.

Black Bear Rescue Manitoba said it recently learned of an application from Amrize to operate a quarry on a property near the facility.

In a post on social media, the rescue said quarry activities could have a negative impact on the animals, saying the noise and vibration from the quarry will have an impact.

“Quarry activity, as we all know, includes loud, blasting noises and vibrations,” said Judy Stearns, owner of the rescue. “There’ll be gravel trucks in the area from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. and the noise will be very disruptive to these already compromised cubs.”

Stearns said even with a berm installed, the noise and vibrations will still be heard on the property.

“Sometimes our house vibrates and our windows shake, and I’ve been outside monitoring the bears, and they’ll run and take cover in their den house,” she said.

She added she is also concerned about potential impact on the nearby aquifer used to help hydrate the bears.

“If our well gets polluted, we go through gallons and gallons of water,” Stearns said. “We’ve got large pools. That’s the bears’ water source. We can’t just go to the store and buy bottled water for the bears. So we would be in trouble on a lot of fronts.”

In a statement, Amrize said their proposal followed the planning process set in place by the RM of Rockwood and included consultation with nearby property owners.

“The project will comply with all municipal and provincial regulations, including environmental and setback requirements,” the company said in a statement. “The initial extraction phase is approximately two kilometres from the nearby black bear rescue centre, and the haul route is intentionally designed to avoid the facility.”

The proposal will be discussed when the RM of Rockwood holds a public hearing March 19 at Stony Mountain Community Centre at 6 p.m.

-With files from CTV’s Jon Hendricks