There’s an average of 1.5 deer-related motor vehicle accidents every day in Thunder Bay.
In July, city council passed a resolution brought forward by Neebing coun. Linda Rydholm to examine ways to control the deer population.
The report is due back at council in November, but before that report is complete city administration is holding a public meeting Thursday to get feedback and suggestions from the general public.
Manager of licensing and enforcement Ron Bourret said they’ve looking at two bylaw ideas they want the public’s input on.
One is controlling the feeding of deer within the city of Thunder Bay and the other is to allow bow hunting of the animals in the city on some pieces of private property.
The city has received complaints about the number of deer in the area, he said, adding that although people appreciate the wildlife around us, it’s now affecting the safety of people.
“We want to look as a city of what we can do about this problem,” he said.
Bourret said they know there are herds in specific areas of the city, specifically in the Mission Island area.
“We’ve heard from companies there, through the police and the MNR (Ministry of Natural Resources), they are concerned for their drivers and their safety,” he said.
One of the main causes for the herds is people feeding the deer and the grain from the elevators along the shoreline of Lake Superior, Bourret added.
Another is the mild winters the area has experienced the last few years.
“It takes a very cold winter with lots of snow before the deer population comes down,” Bourret said.
The MNR is helping the city draft the potential rules and regulations so they fit within the existing provincial wildlife act.
The public meeting will be held Thursday, Oct. 20 at the Waverley Resource Library in the auditorium at 6 p.m.
