Wintergreen residents choose proactive measures to coexist with black bears.

Wintergreen Resort, a resi­dential and vacation community nestled against the Blue Ridge Parkway in Nelson County, is a place where it is sometimes hard to tell where the for­est ends and the real estate begins, es­pecially if you are a bear. Prompted by a series of break-ins by bears to re­sort homes in 2007 and the removal or euthanasia of nine bears over two years, Wintergreen residents decided to take action to make theirs a com­munity where both people and bears could coexist.

Wintergreen Property Owners Association staff and Wintergreen police began cooperating with De­partment (DGIF) biologists and law enforcement officers on measures to curtail the bear-related problems oc­curring at the resort. Public refuse fa­cilities were secured and homeown­ers were advised on managing trash and bird feeders. And to increase bear awareness by residents and visi­tors, the Wintergreen Nature Foun­dation hosted a seminar given by DGIF on black bears, with focus on preventing further negative interac­tions.

Fueled by a strong desire to pre­vent future conflicts, Wintergreen residents Sarah and Robert Scott founded the Wintergreen Bear Smart program. After reading about the Bear Smart effort in British Columbia in the book Living with Bears: A Practi­cal Guide to Bear Country by Linda Masterson, the Scotts decided to start their own Bear Smart community.

The Wintergreen Bear Smart pro­gram is governed by a seven-person council, made up of full-time resi­dents. The council assessed the con­ditions that were contributing to the habituation of bears to people such as bird feeding and unsecured garbage. Another important task was to gain the cooperation of other Wintergreen community organizations to support the new Bear Smart program.

The success that the Bear Smart program has experienced can be seen in the numbers. Since 2007, the num­ber of bear incidents has dropped by over 80%, and those resulting in damage to homes or property have decreased by over 90%. In 2009, a few bears were seen and at least one win­dow screen was damaged, but ha­rassment by Wintergreen police proved effective. No traps were set and no bears were euthanized.

So, how did this community begin their road to successful and harmo­nious coexistence of humans and bears? To begin the process, con­cerned Wintergreen residents met with the local DGIF district wildlife biologist to discuss the Bear Smart program. Then, by following Bear Smart guidelines, they established the Bear Smart Council and met with each of the various boards at Winter­green to explain the program and so­licit cooperation. From these meet­ings, the council received full commit­ment from the various boards, includ­ing the Wintergreen Property Owners Association Board, which had already begun to minimize conflicts at trash disposal sites. The next step focused on media outreach and programs for local groups to promote community­wide efforts.

Another major step occurred when the property owners association passed resolutions requiring home­owners to stop feeding birds between April l and December 1 and banned outside garbage cans unless they were bear-proof. The council request­ed that the association purchase bear­-proof containers for public-use areas, in addition to the large compactors al­ready on-site.

Other proactive measures taken by the Wintergreen community included record-keeping by Wintergreen police on bear incidents and sightings, and immediate response by the police de­partment to all bear incidents. The Wintergreen Property Owners Asso­ciation agreed to pay for and put up signs, as well as post information on their Web site concerning bear activity in the area. Wintergreen Partners, Inc. provided garbage management and bear literature to arriving resort guests. They also show the Depart­ment's DVD, Living with Black Bears in Virginia, on the in-house TV In addi­tion to no longer selling bird food from April to December, the Winter­green Nature Foundation published a special brochure on black bears that includes precautions when encountering bears in the wild and around homes. The foundation also has the black bears DVD available for view­ing by visitors.

When asked to provide advice for communities that might want to start a Bear Smart program of their own, the Scotts offer the following tips:

• It must be a citizens' effort to en­gage the various entities who have a stake in managing the bear prob­lem in the community.
• The education of community members regarding the habitua­tion of bears is essential.
• It is important to not assign blame for the problem to various people or agencies and, rather, just deal with the facts on what is happen­ing and what would solve the problem.

Also, an assessment of community conditions (found at http: / / www.bearsmart.com / becoming- bear­smart/ community /bear-hazard­ assessments) was reported along with recommendations to each com­munity entity.

What does the future hold for human-bear relationships on this l1,000-acre community on the eastern slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains? The Bear Smart Council pledges to continue to educate the community regarding program progress and bring awareness to continuing prob­lems. The Wintergreen Property Owners Association will continue to send out letters to residents yearly re­minding them of their responsibili­ties, enforce bird feeding and trash regulations, and keep DGIF up-to­-date on non-compliance or illegal feeding activities. The Department will continue to support this program and community by providing educa­tion and enforcement as needed.

The Bear Smart Council, resi­dents, and all Wintergreen entities understand that the Bear Smart pro­gram will be an ongoing effort with continuing challenges due to the constant influx of new residents and guests. However, they feel that the reward-being able to live in a com­munity surrounded by the beauty of the natural world and associated wildlife, with little to no conflict-is worth the challenge.

All residents of Virginia living in bear country can benefit from follow­ing a few simple guidelines to reduce bear attractants around their homes. View tips and guidelines by watch­ing the video, Living with Black Bears in Virginia, on the DGIF Web site (www.dgif.virginia.gov/wildlife/bear/). To learn about becoming a Bear Smart Community, first contact this Department for site-specific as­sistance and recommendations, and visit the Get Bear Smart Society Web site: www.bearsmart.com.

Jaime Sajecki is the bear biologist for the Depart­ment of Game and Inland Fisheries.

Download Virginia Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries Fact Sheet: Living with Black Bears in Virginia.

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