Vernon considers bear-proof cans

VERNON-The Bear Education and Resource Group has asked the Township Council to permit them to hold a sale of bear-resistant garbage cans in the Municipal Building parking lot, according to Mayor Ira Weiner. In the past several weeks, Vernon residents have reported three incidents involving troublesome bears, including two in which a mother bear with cubs fatally injured a pet dog, and one in which a bear destroyed a backyard fish pond and ate the expensive ornamental fish it contained. "If using these cans will help prevent bear issues, I am in favor of that," said Weiner. The ensuing discussion focused on the existing Vernon ordinance, which stipulates that residents must place garbage in closed containers when they set it out for curbside collection. There was general agreement among the councilmen that it would be valuable to scrutinize the ordinance to assure that it was valid, strong and enforceable. Deputy Mayor Janet Morrison observed that many residents have been ignoring the ordinance without repercussions from the municipality. Some residents prefer setting out their garbage in plastic bags, because they consider them safer. Empty garbage cans at the curbside may signal a vacant home to would-be burglars, she noted. The councilmen also questioned whether the township ought to be in the business of promoting the sales of commercial products, such as the bear-resistant cans, remarking that both McAfee hardware and Heaven Hill farm in Vernon carry the cans. Morrison inquired about the merits of the township picking up a portion of the cost of the bear-resistant cans, as neighboring municipality Hardyston has. Hardyston used Clean Communities grant dollars to cover half the cost of Critter Can garbage containers (crittercans.com) for the 600 residents who purchased them. The municipality offered the cans to residents for $20, less than half their normal retail price of $50. In 2005 Vernon received $35,960 in Clean Communities dollars. The Department of Environmental Protection grants the funds to communities throughout New Jersey for program associated with combating litter. Weiner said that Vernon had only about $3,000 or so remaining in Clean Communities dollars, which probably would be insufficient to help fund such a program in Vernon this year. He also expressed some concern that the remaining funds might be required for anticipated projects. In an interview earlier this year, B.E.A.R. Group volunteer Susan Stringfield explained that garbage-fed bears have a higher reproductive rate than do bears fed on natural foods, because they have a higher fat diet. Keeping bears away from garbage may help cut down the number of bears roaming about Sussex County. The Bear Group (savenjbears.com/) is a volunteer organization founded in 1992 to educate the public and to promote peaceful co-existence between humans and black bears in northern New Jersey. The Critter Cans the group promotes are modified hazardous waste containers made by the Eagle Company. With Critter Cans widely in use in a neighborhood, the bears tend to give up their garbage-foraging habits, and go back into the forest to eat bear-appropriate foods, such as nuts, berries, leaves and roots, Stringfield says.