Summary of Bear & Trash Roundtable meetings
Facilitated by Tami Graham
March 6th, 2003
Purpose of Meeting:
- To address the root causes of human-bear conflicts
- Suggest a management plan to reduce conflicts as well as devise and encourage efforts by the community, governmental agencies, businesses and individuals to reduce conflicts
- Identify the scope of the issue via a facilitated dialogue with all present
What’s your perspective of the problem?
In what way do you have to deal with it or respond?
Major issues identified:
- Need for coordinated, consistent and comprehensive education and outreach
- Need for more complete and coordinated data tracking and gathering related to incidents
- Need for research of other communities efforts and successes
- Consider whether more stringent public policy should be advocated for regarding human behavior that is contributing to problems
March 20th, 2003
Purpose of Meeting:
Explore possible formation of Bear & Trash Task Force for our area, including challenges and opportunities in doing so at this time.
Prioritized outcomes/next step action items from meeting:
- Create a dimension study/statistical gathering apparatus to assess scope of problem. Note: possibly create a questionnaire to be sent w/ utility bills
- Education Materials/Outreach campaign. Note: research other communities efforts
- Step-up enforcement of current regulations
- Discussion of creation of Bear Trash Task Force was tabled. The current group has committed to continuing to meet under the auspices of The Bear & Trash Roundtable with the above prioritized goals
March 18, 2004
Purpose and outcome of meeting:
- Update on progress of Bear Smart
- Reports from various agencies on 2003 bear activity