Learn about living with bears; creating bear smart communities; recreating in bear country; bear safety at work; and managing bears (for wildlife officials).

Managing Attractants

Rule #1: Don’t attract bears

The key to creating a Bear Smart community is not to attract bears in the first place.

Securing attractants is the single best way to keep people safe, prevent property damage, and avoid the unnecessary killing of bears. In communities, this requires a two-prong approach. Municipal, regional and provincial/state governments must provide easy access to a large-scale bear-proof waste management system, and individual residents, visitors and recreationists must secure all attractants from bears until they enter the waste management system.

That is not to say that a bear will never pass through an attractant-free area as they may come into peopled areas for other reasons e.g. a young bear or a mother with small cubs make seek refuge in peopled areas where they can hide from more dominant bears. The only thing that will ultimately keep a bear out of any area is a well-maintained electric fence.

Follow these simple guidelines and you will greatly reduce the chance of attracting bears and encouraging conflicts.

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