A Grizzly bear at the Anchorage Zoo tries to open a "Grizzly Can", one of many that will be offered for free to East Anchorage residents. Photo courtesy the AP.
Story Created:
May 5, 2008 at 10:33 PM AKDT
Story Updated:
May 5, 2008 at 10:33 PM AKDT
A joint plan devised by the Fish and Game Department and Alaska Waste company aims to keep would-be garbage bears out of East Anchorage. Up to 500 homes in Muldoon and all of Stuckagain Heights will receive free bear-resistant garbage containers.
By signing up of the program residents in East Anchorage can avoid at least some bear problems. There are no additional costs for customers requesting a new container, only the obligatory monthly garbage pickup fee of $15.
To encourage people to sign up, Fish and Game will be contacting eligible households directly via mail or door-to-door exchanges.
BP, Alaska Waste, the city and Fish and Game are all contributing to cover the expenses that would normally run about an extra $9 a month. According to Jeff Riley, Alaska Waste received little attention when it offered bear-resistant trash bins to customers with no subsidy.
This proposal comes weeks after a man was mauled in Kenai. It was believed that open containers on the man's porch were responsible for the attack. For more information visit the link below.
The goal of the program is to make both bears and neighborhoods safer.
