Sharpshooters wanted

What do you get when you locate a landfill near the airport serving the most populous region of an island province? About 25,000 seagulls--and the serious threat of birdstrikes like the one that brought down a U.S. Airways jet earlier this week. Alarmed by the New York incident and aware that St. John’s Airport ranks second among major Canadian airports for birdstrikes (congrats Edmonton, you’re first!), officials have enacted a plan to cut down of the gull population at Robin Hood Bay. The strategy includes "pyrotechnics" designed to frighten the birds. But seagulls aren’t exactly known for their shyness, so it also includes "lethal measures that will see some gulls shot and killed." One suspects they mean "most gulls," but can’t say so.

The Telegram