BAIT AND DITCH? PARK SERVICE SEEKS AN END TO BEAR BAITING ON ALASKA NATIONAL PRESERVES

While Alaska continues to be one of the only regions in North America that permits grizzly bear hunting, a new federal proposal would prohibit hunters on national preserves from drawing in bears by putting out bait such as doughnuts, dog food or bacon grease, among other attractants.

The controversial move would reverse a former President Donald Trump administration policy known as the 2020 Alaska Hunting and Trapping rule.

According to a National Park Service press release, that decision introduced “several controversial sport hunting practices, including bear baiting. The new regulation would reduce visitor use conflicts and concerns over potential safety issues related to bear baiting and would also restore consistency between harvest practices allowed in national preserves and NPS management policies with respect to natural processes, abundances and wildlife behavior.”

The new regulations wouldn’t prevent hunters from utilizing bait stations to attract bears in other game management units of the state not on federal land, nor would it a ect subsistence hunts on national parks/preserves. But President Joe Biden’s NPS aims to reverse course from the previous administration’s U-turn that had allowed bear baiting following a 2015 federal determination barring it.

“We take seriously our responsibilities under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act and the NPS Organic Act, which include mandates for hunting while also conserving and protecting wildlife in our national preserves,” NPS Alaska regional director Sarah Creachbaum said. “This proposed rule would realign our e orts to better manage national preserve lands in Alaska for natural processes, as well as address public safety concerns associated with bear baiting.”