Banff is offering to cover the full cost of removing fruit-bearing trees from private property and replacing them with native, non-fruit-bearing trees. The program targets apple, cherry, plum, mountain ash, crabapple, and chokecherry trees that can attract bears into residential neighbourhoods.
The Town of Banff runs the ongoing Fruit Tree Replacement Program. It pays 100 percent of tree cutting, stump grinding where possible, and the purchase and planting of a suitable replacement tree. The town also coordinates contractor hiring and logistics.
The need for the program became clear in September 2023, when a large grizzly bear known as The Boss repeatedly entered town to eat crab apples in backyards. According to the town, 15 trees were removed in the weeks following those visits, compared to only 22 removals over the previous eight years under the program.
Michael Hay, Manager of Environment and Sustainability for Banff, compared the smell of ripe fruit trees to an apple pie on a windowsill for a grizzly bear. Since 2015, residents and businesses have removed 47 fruit trees, mostly crab apple trees, but dozens remain in the townsite.
In August 2023, Banff amended its Community Standards Bylaw to give enforcement officers authority to order removal of fruit-bearing trees that have attracted bears or other dangerous wildlife. Non-compliance could lead to court orders.
Bears that become used to eating fruit in town often face relocation or euthanasia. In 2022, five black bears were euthanized in the Banff and Canmore area after becoming habituated to crab apple trees. A female grizzly relocated to British Columbia in 2017 was later killed by a hunter.
Residents can email [email protected] to ask about eligibility for the free tree replacement program.
