July is BEAR Logic Month in Nevada, a time to teach residents and visitors how to live and recreate in bear county. As many of you already know, securing trash is the best way to prevent human-bear conflicts.
What many people don’t know is that they may be living or recreating in bear habitat. As drought conditions persist, bears continue to move into more urban environments.
When people are irresponsible with their food and garbage, bears can wind up in trouble or worse, being killed. The Nevada Department of Wildlife reports that nearly 95 percent of all human-bear conflicts are associated with garbage. Bears naturally avoid humans, but if they have access to human food sources they may become addicted to the food, habituated to humans, and in rare cases they may even become aggressive. NDOW asks that everyone does their part to reduce wildlife conflicts by taking steps to remove access to human sources of food.
Responsible trash handling includes:
Watch the video: "Secure Your Trash"
Using a Bear Resistant trash Container (BRC) stored a minimum of 25 feet from your home
Know the local trash ordinances for the area where you live
If you don’t have a BRC then don’t put trash out until the morning of your trash pick-up date
Store your trash container in a basement, garage or other secure out-building only if no other alternative is available
While the Nevada Department of Wildlife recommends that everyone follow appropriate trash handling practices, residents should take extra precautions if they live in Lake Tahoe or around the following areas along the Carson Front where bears live:
West Carson City
Carson Valley
Washoe Valley
Verdi, south west Reno and Galena
Topaz Lake area
Smith Valley
Hawthorne
All three counties bordering Lake Tahoe have ordinances requiring responsible trash handling in bear country. If you see a violation, do your part to protect bears and call one of the numbers below.
Carson City (775) 887-2171
Washoe County (775) 328-2434
Douglas County (775) 782-6214
Incline Village GID (775) 832-1221
Remember, NDOW cannot remove the problem you’ve created simply by trapping a bear. Permanent solutions must incorporate responsible trash handling.