Kelowna

Kelowna Council agrees something has to be done quickly to ensure the remaining feral rabbit population is eliminated.

What they couldn't agree on is how.

Council debated the merits of live trapping versus culling for close to 90 minutes Monday, deciding culling should be an option, but not necessarily the first one.

EBB Environmental Consulting agreed to a $54,000 contract last spring to deal with the City's exploding rabbit population. At the time, it was estimated as many as 1,000 rabbits were running wild, most along the Enterprise Way corridor.

The contract with EBB expired March 4.

City Forestry Supervisor, Ian Wilson, says the population is now under control. Only 22 rabbits have been counted recently, although it is estimated as many as 100 may still be running wild.

"It's proven to be challenging to remove the last few remaining animals due to a number of reasons, low trapping efficiency, some continued interference. Only about a dozen rabbits have been trapped in the last three weeks by EBB," says Wilson.

"It's been a long, cold winter, but rabbit breeding season is just around the corner."

Unless monitoring and control efforts are continued, Wilson says the City faces another rabbit outbreak.

Wilson recommended Council extend the contract with EBB for two weeks while quotes are gathered on a new contract.

The new contract, worth $20,000, would provide $5,000 for education and communication and $15,000 for on-going rabbit control, including live trapping and/or culling, with a goal of eliminating the remaining population.

While most on Council agreed to allow EBB the opportunity to live trap only for the next two weeks, Councillor Graeme James was adamant that culling be an immediate option.

"However you look at it, these are rodents. Live trapping I believe is four-and-a-half times the cost of culling and they are having a hard time trapping because the population is low," says James.

"We have an obligation to keep the population low and if the only way we can do it is by culling, then we should be looking at that way."

Councillor Robert Hobson, says he is willing to allow only live trapping, but adds if that doesn't work, he does agree with culling.

"I want to move ahead with the most effective way to eliminate them and culling is the most effective," says Hobson.

While Council did vote against a return to culling, it did leave the door open for that option in the new contract, despite loud objections from Councillors Michele Rule and Charlie Hodge and Mayor Sharon Shepherd.

"I would be willing to support the recommendation if we could make the understanding that extra weight would be given to a contractor that came forward with a live trapping option that didn't include long term costs, but with live trapping being the preferred method," says Rule.

Mayor Shepherd said she would not be able to support any motion which included culling of any sort.

"Quite frankly, we have had horrible PR regarding this. I would like to walk out of this room thinking that we are in a new era and that we are doing things a little differently and trying to work with the community," says Shepherd.

"We have been inundated with correspondence that has been quite upset with the way we have dealt with this in the past. I think we have an opportunity to do it differently and the lack of culling I don't think is a way of saying we are putting our hands up and it's not going to be successful."

James disagreed, adding he's not in favour of continuing to throw a lot of taxpayer money at the problem.

"We're getting to the point where we can control them. I don't think we'll ever get rid of them, but if we can reduce their numbers significantly it will be a benefit to everybody," added James.

"I'm just not comfortable spending a lot of taxpayers money on rabbit, or rodents as I call them. So, I'm a proponent of actually culling them right now."

Council in the end did agree to extend the contract with EBB by two weeks while quotes are accepted for a new contractor.

EBB will only be able to live trap for the next two weeks.