Foster City hiring contractor to develop geese plan

According to a city staff report, the Canada Goose Population Management Plan will provide the framework for managing the geese population and what techniques to use, including all short- and long-term management plans. It also contains habitat assessments and provides recommendations for habitat modifications to make Foster City parks less inviting for the geese, as well as community education plans. The council passed the contract with Wildlife Innovations at its Feb. 6 meeting by a vote of 5-0.

“These are the only actions being taken this evening,” said Derek Schweigart, director of Parks and Recreation. “The scope of this agreement and plan does not include implementation measures, including hazing or depredation.”

However, while depredation was not considered at the council meeting, it remains a potential option that concerns people against possible killings. Many public speakers urged the council not to consider killing the geese as an option in the management plan. They argued it was immoral and was not cost-effective. John Epperson, a member of the board of directors for the Sequoia Audubon Society, spoke at the meeting and urged the council to focus on non-lethal actions and consider more holistic measures.

“Based upon the comments of others and staff, it’s clear that lethal measures are not off the table,” Epperson said. “They are being considered along with everything else. I would echo other comments here and say lethal measures should be considered last when nothing else works.”

Foster City has the necessary U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services permits to cull around 100 Canada Geese, lasting until July 31, 2023. The city has delayed any decisions on lethal options until the spring because it is more difficult to cull geese during the winter. The city has not made any decision on lethal measures. The city has expressed concern about the rising goose population that has resulted in poop droppings. It argues it constitutes a public health hazard, degraded water quality in lagoons and created issues with the city’s parks and sports fields. In June of 2022, the goose population in Foster City was 379, compared with 181 in 2020.

According to city staff, it selected Wildlife Innovations to create a mitigation plan because of its aggressive timeline and cost proposal. Schweigart said the city expects the plan to be completed within six months, pending a CEQA review. It will need to come back to the council for its implementation. The plan is only the first step, and any further actions must return to the council for approval. It will cost the city $48,660 for the plan, with an additional $35,960 for other uses, with around $7,300 in contingency.

Mayor Jon Froomin said he was interested in looking at habitat and landscape modification first to try solving the issue.

“I am also supportive of trying all reasonable non-lethal solutions first,” Froomin said. “If we can solve this problem in a non-lethal method, that’s the preferred method by all, but if that doesn’t solve the problem, we need to know what the next steps are.”

However, Vice Mayor Patrick Sullivan thought there were other ways to handle geese besides depredation and applauded the attempt to continue looking at other options.

“I encourage the public to continue to stand strong. I think there are other remedies besides depredation,” Sullivan said.

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

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