Protesters camped out next to the Vancouver Art Gallery can remain where they are for another night, after a judge with British Columbia's Supreme Court delayed hearing an application by the city to remove their tents.

Lawyers with the City of Vancouver were in court on Tuesday seeking an injunction that would pave the way for the site of the weeks-old protest to be cleared.

But the judge hearing the city's application has allowed the protesters additional time to seek legal counsel. The application will now be heard Wednesday at 10 a.m. local time.

During a news conference on Tuesday afternoon, Vancouver Police Chief Jim Chu said the legal action is part of an attempt to end the weeks-old protest peacefully.

However, he wouldn't say whether police were seeking the authority to clear the encampment by force, if need be.

"When the court proceeding is concluded we'll look at what legal authority is granted to us by the judge and we'll move from there," Chu said.

The city had issued eviction notices to the protesters at the site earlier on Monday, asking them to voluntary leave. But judging by the tents remaining on Tuesday, few, if any, took the city up on its offer.

The city listed a death that occurred on Saturday, a near-fatal drug overdose, fire safety, injection drug use, the presence of pests and other hazards as its reasons for eviction.

Police officers bitten

Earlier Tuesday, Chu warned the protesters to vacate the site after a scuffle sent two officers to hospital with "human bite wounds" overnight.

The incident happened when firefighters moved in to extinguish a fire that had been burning in a barrel, Chu said in a statement.

Fire department officials had made it clear that safety hazards, including fires, were barred at the tent city, which is located near the Vancouver Art Gallery.

One officer had his ammunition clip stolen in the skirmish, Chu said, while other officers were kicked or punched and two suffered bite wounds.

He charged that the city's Occupy encampment has become infiltrated with violent instigators "who seem bent on breaking the law and fighting with anyone who gets in their way."

"This can no longer stand," Chu said. "We are issuing a public warning to those who remain on the site. It is time to leave."

‘Occupy' woes elsewhere

Cities around the country have been similarly losing patience with the protests.

In nearby Victoria, protesters also rejected a notice of removal on Monday.

On Tuesday morning there, a protester staying in a tent as part of the protest threw a two-litre bottle, believed to contain urine, at a city worker.

A city truck had arrived to remove a bicycle that was hanging from the tree and had been declared a health hazard.

Protesters in Quebec City were asked to leave last week but have refused to budge.

And in London, Ont., several hundred people remained in a city park after a deadline to remove their tents passed without incident Tuesday evening.

However, in Halifax, the Occupy protesters struck a deal with the city to move their tents for Remembrance Day ceremonies to be held at their camp site.

They plan to return when the ceremonies are over.

With files from The Canadian Press