Manitoba judge orders NDP government to reconsider polar bear viewing permits for Churchill ecotourism company

A Manitoba judge says Natural Resources Minister Ian Bushie must reconsider granting permits to a company that's no longer allowed to take tourists to see polar bears in large tundra vehicles east of Churchill.

In a decision issued Friday, Manitoba Court of King's Bench Justice Shawn Greenberg concluded the province acted improperly when it decided not to re-issue two tundra vehicle permits to Churchill's Lazy Bear Expeditions for the 2025-26 polar bear viewing season.

Greenberg stated there was no reason for the branch to fail to renew two permits the province originally granted to Lazy Bear in 2020 and cast doubt on the provincial wildlife branch's claims that decision was motivated by a need to protect polar bears.

"There is no evidence that polar bear conservation will be improved by reducing the number of vehicles on the tundra from 20 to 18," Greenberg stated in a decision issued in response to a request for a judicial review from Lazy Bear and its owner, Wally Daudrich.

Two other ecotourism companies, Great White Bear and Frontiers North, have a combined 18 permits to operate large tundra vehicles offroad the Churchill Wildlife Management Area, the decision notes, adding Great White Bear initiated legal action after the province issued two permits to Lazy Bear in 2020.

On Feb. 27, 2025, provincial wildlife branch director Maria Arlt wrote to Lazy Bear and Daudrich, stating his two vehicle permits are being "rescinded" because of the decline of the polar bear population in the western Hudson Bay area and the risk of habituation to polar bear vehicles.

Greenberg said the evidence before the court suggested the number of vehicles viewing polar bears only appears to be contentious on maintained roads east of Churchill where 27 tour companies operate, most of them using conventional vehicles, not in the offroad areas where tundra vehicles operate.

Greenberg also stated two stationary tundra lodges operated by Frontiers North and Great White Bear during the polar bear viewing season appear to pose more of a habituation threat to the animals than moving vehicles.

"The impact on the tundra environment by the cooking and waste operated by [Lazy Bear's] competitors would seem to be more threatening than the two tundra vehicles," Greenberg stated.

The judge said the evidence and history suggests the decision not to renew Lazy Bear's permits was not motivated by conservation. Instead, the judge said it appears the province was trying to respond to Great White Bear's litigation before the wildlife branch changes the way it issues permits for polar bear viewing tundra vehicles.

Greenberg noted Arlt's letter to Daudrich included a pledge to "restoring a fair and transparent allocation process in the future."

The province, the judge stated, should have revised the permitting process "before recommending reverting to a duopoly" where only Frontiers North and Great White Bear are permitted to operate tundra vehicles.

Daudrich said Saturday in a text message he is happy with the decision but said he will continue with a separate legal action against the the province, two wildlife officials and three NDP cabinet ministers over the 2025 decision not to renew Lazy Bear's permits.

Emily Coutts, a spokesperson for the NDP government, said it will take the time to review the court decision before deciding upon a course of action.

Great White Bear Tours president Kyle Walkowski declined comment, stating he has not yet read the decision.

CBC News requested comment from Frontiers North president John Gunter but did not hear back prior to the publication of this story.