For Immediate Release
Media Contact: Jackie.Greger@sierraclub.org
Unnecessary NJ Bear Hunt Extended - 468 Bears Killed So Far
The New Jersey Fish and Wildlife have extended the black bear hunting season by four days this week. The total number of bears killed for this season was 468 with 29 harvested. The reason for the extension is per state regulations to achieve harvest objectives that help protect public safety and maintain a sustainable bear population. The season extension will begin on Wednesday, Dec. 13 and will end on Saturday, Dec. 16. The NJ Sierra Club opposes the bear hunt and extension and urges the Murphy Administration to implement a non lethal bear management plan.
“Unnecessary bear hunts that do not solve anything have been a systemic problem in New Jersey throughout multiple administrations. Enough already. The NJ bear hunt extension is completely unneeded. So far 468 bears have been killed because Governor Murphy failed to keep his word to end the bear hunt. If the NJ Fish and Wildlife really care about protecting public safety, they need to adopt a real management plan that deals with protection of habitats, garbage, and educating people in bear country,” said Anjuli Ramos-Busot, New Jersey Director of the Sierra Club.
Just last week, a bill that would amend the law concerning the feeding of black bears, S1891(Johnson)/A1967(Mukherji), was released out of the Senate Economic Growth Committee. Under current law, the prohibition on the feeding of black bears does not apply in the case of an unintentional feeding of a black bear. "Unintentional feeding" is defined in the law as using or placing any material for a purpose other than to attract or entice black bears but which results in the attraction or enticement of a black bear, and includes the use of bait for deer in accordance with section 1 of P.L.1997, c.424 (C.23:4-24.4) and the State Fish and Game Code.
“New Jersey’s reactive bear management approach is ineffective, as it focuses on managing the bears, not managing the source of the problem. There are better proven solutions to limit human/bear interactions than hunting. For example, S1891(Johnson)/A1967(Mukherji) is a step in the right direction when it comes to tackling unintentional feeding or attracting bears. It's a matter of how we will coexist with bears. Without proactive non-lethal management, human-bear conflicts will continue to increase, and bears will continue to pay the price,” said Anjuli Ramos-Busot, New Jersey Director of the Sierra Club.
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