Spring weather signals bear season in the Kootenays and that means that any food scraps, particularly bones and scraps leftover from barbecues, are almost a guaranteed lure for bringing in the bears, famished from a long winter’s rest.
The City of Trail is once again joining forces with Natural Control Alternatives Society (NCA) to provide bear-proof bins for people to dispose of bear attractants that they don’t want to have in or near their houses until garbage day.
One of the bins will again be located at the city public works yard, in Glenmerry, but the second will be positioned in a new location, at the end of Hazelwood Drive, in Sunningdale, near the city’s pump house.
“We decided to change the location of the second bin this year for a number of reasons,” said Andrea Jolly, communications and event coordinator for the city.
“The location last year, near the bocce pit at the end of Rossland Avenue, was isolated and it was hard to manage security. We had some incidences of people trying to break in to the bin to steal the toonies. It also gives other residents an opportunity to have the bins near their residences and, yes, there are more bears along the river in Sunningdale than there were near the bocce pits.”
The bins will, once again, operate on an honour system where residents are asked to donate $2 in the collection box on the bin for each full-size bag of garbage they deposit.
The funds collected will help contribute to the purchase and maintenance costs, as well as the costs for Alpine Disposal and Recycling to empty the containers.
“As responsible residents, it’s important we dispose of our garbage properly,” Ernie Millin, NCA organizer, said in a media release.
“We share this area with bears and other wildlife; reducing the temptation for bears to visit our neighbourhood is the best way to keep everyone and the bears safe.”