We all know and have heard by now that New Jersey has some serious bear population problems and as a result there has been a remarkable increase in bear/human encounters. New Jersey refuses to do anything about the problem other than blame humans for living and tell them to buy better bear-proof garbage cans.
The state of New York meanwhile is deciding to take the lead and do what they know is the right and best thing to do. They are going to expand their bear hunting zones as a way to counter the rapid growth of bears in certain areas.
The polar opposite of Liza Jackson, New Jersey’s Department of Environment Protection commissioner, New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation commissioner, Pete Grannis, recognizes and acknowledges that hunting is a viable tool. This according to Newsday.
State DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis says the hunting boundaries were expanded because the black bear population has grown in number and range in recent years, and hunting is an important tool in managing bear population growth.
Gordon Batcheller is a wildlife biologist with the NYDEC and says when he began his science career in Western New York, there were few bears. Now he says dealing with bears is a common occurrence.
Anti-hunting groups continue their onslaught of deceit attempting to convince the people that man is the problem and that we are living in their space and should therefore suffer the negative consequences of dealing with hungry bears.
I might concur that man is the problem but not nearly in the same manner as these groups might. Man has done such a fantastic job of managing these animals, they are flourishing. That isn’t to say that certain conditions don’t have good and bad effects on bears but they must be responsibly managed. That means making adjustments to populations.
A well run wildlife management program will stay on top of issues like the bear and implement changes to its hunting season to maintain population numbers at healthy levels. Kudos to the New York Department of Environmental Conservation for being a leader and staying on top of things.
Maybe some of this will rub off on your neighbors to the south.
Tom Remington
