Sky Valley passes new bear ordinance

Sky Valley Council voted last week to be the first in the state to regulate how people live around bears.

Members from both the council and the public heard from an official of the Georgia Department of Natural Resouces (DNR) Wildlife Resources Division (WRD) who was present to advise and answer any questions about what it means to be a “bear wise” community.

With Sky Valley being nestled in a mountain valley on the northwest slopes of Rabun Bald, Georgia’s second-highest peak, it’s evident to see why bears favor this area.

According to the DNR, the bear bylaws or ordinances are a necessary part of any successful human-bear conflict management plan. Education and voluntary compliance are rarely enough to encourage everyone in a community to effectively manage potential bear attractants. And it just takes one bird feeder or poorly stored bag of dog food to sentence an unassuming bear to an early death.

In order to protect both the residents and bears, certain regulations will now be enforced such as:

• A prohibition on feeding bears or other wildlife, whether intentional or unintentional, by allowing access to attractants.
• Residents must have mandatory bear-proofing of solid waste and/or the solid waste system.
• Bird feeders containing seed, nuts, suet or hummingbird nectar may be allowed with certain restrictions during the non-denning period which will occur from April 15th to November 15. Feeders must be suspended from a cable or other device so that they are inaccessible to bears. The area below the feeder should be kept free of accumulations of seed.
• Barbecues must be kept clean and any residual attractant must be burnt off the grill. Grease cans must be stored indoors where they are inaccessible to wildlife.