The Boulder Bear Coalition (BBC) implements preventative measures to reduce human-bear conflicts to keep local black bears wild and free and the Boulder community safe. 

BBCs main driver has been to approach bear management from the bottom up. Rather than relying on wildlife officers to respond to a crisis of a bear in town,  BBC focuses on educating and empowering the community to keep bears from coming into town (by reducing attractants, increasing deterrents) so that wildlife officers do not need to handle bears in town. A community is built on shared values. Wildlife is something that most residents in Boulder value, thus BBC was born from a need to create a cohesive understanding of what we can do, in clear steps, to protect bears and how we can effectively communicate this information.

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How to Protect Local Black Bears:

#1 Secure Your Trash

Bears are in town because they are hungry! Please secure your trash by:
1. using a bear resistant trash cart
2. securing your trash cart in a secure area until time of trash pickup

#2 Report Trash Violations:

All businesses and residents west of Broadway are required to use bear resistant trash carts to prevent bears from getting into trash. If you see trash strewn or cans not latched, use Inquire App to report the violation -it could save a bear’s life!

#3 Take down birdfeeders

Take bird feeders down between April and November. Even bird seed that falls on the ground is an attractant to bears. Bears will eat during the day, and love hummingbird feeders.

We suggest planting flowers to attract birds.

#4 Harvest your fruit

For help harvesting fruit, contact Community Fruit Rescue

 

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Sierra Magazine article about BBC’s role in bear management in Boulder:

 

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Boulder Bear Coalition, a video summary:

Testimonials

“Brenda Lee demonstrated both leadership and initiative, pressing the Boulder City Council to adopt measures aimed at securing garbage and the result was passage of new requirements of bear resistant garbage and compost containers. 

Ms. Lee acted as a crucial liaison between wildlife managers and the community often effectively communicating with individuals who were distrustful and suspicious of CPW. Ms. Lee encouraged residents to be proactive and take responsibility for their own properties and behaviors.  When we removed and put down a very high profile bear Ms. Lee and the Boulder Bear Coalition maintained a productive and cooperative relationship with wildlife managers while continuing to advocate for the well being of bears.  They worked to understand management decisions and how they could play a positive role around them.

The Boulder Bear Coalition has been a catalyst in working towards solutions that involve individual residents and public policy.  As we move forward and continue to try to prevent conflict properly evaluating the underlying causes will be critical.  Ms. Lee has exhaustively researched and proposed ways to evaluate habitat and movement corridors within the city that if executed will make meaningful contributions to our understanding of the problem and can result in novel but realistic solutions. With the right resources I expect the Boulder Bear Coalition can make Boulder into a model for other communities.” 

-Kristin Cannon, CPW NE Regional Director

“The Boulder Bear Coalition clearly cares deeply about the fate of the bears, are dedicated problem-solvers, and have proceeded to find tangible ways to proactively protect Boulder’s black bears. One of the first solutions that Boulder Bear Coalition introduced was the proposal to use bear resistant carts throughout the city of Boulder as trash was clearly a main attractant for bears coming into town. Boulder Bear Coalition has established itself as a trusted group that has formed effective partnerships in order to protect bears, ensure public safety and empower the community to protect its wildlife. I trust that, in her hands, Brenda Lee and her team will succeed in making a difference for the lives of black bears.”

-Lisa Morzel, Member of the Boulder City Council

“The issue has to be ripe, and you have to have all the right people in the room who are actively engaged. Leaving people out of the conversation is not good business and not the way to find solutions to the problem. Boulder added employees in its code enforcement department to enforce bear regulations but ultimately learned that going door-to-door to educate households and fine residents is “very expensive.” The city of Boulder ultimately mandated bear-proof trash containers in neighborhoods west of Broadway Avenue.

None of this would have worked out had we not worked with stakeholders who were invested in finding ways to minimize bear/human conflicts — trash haulers and community partners (like the) Boulder Bear Coalition,”

-Kris Middledorf, CPW Area Manager

Excerpt from book:
“Outraged citizens flooded the city council meetings. It was clear the dead bears had been drawn into town by the endless availability of human food. They [Boulder Bear Coalition] pushed council members to pass an ordinance that would require Boulder residents to lock up their trash in bear-resistant garbage bins. Though trash ordinances already existed in small mountain towns, like Banff and those near Lake Tahoe, it was the first time a large city would pass such a law in the United States. That Boulder, a city with more than one hundred thousand residents, should need to implement this strategy to deal with black bears signaled a profound shift in the American West; as urban areas expanded, hungry black bears were no longer going to abide by arbitrary human boundaries. “

– Gloria Dickie, author of Eight Bears, Mythic Past and Imperiled Future

Check out Colorado’s statewide nonprofit
protecting black bears across the state:
Colorado Bear Coalition