Bear-resistant lids for city dumpsters have arrived at the Cordova refuse facility.
Crews are completing installations of the lids and are moving them into place as the dumpsters are completed.
“The city purchased enough bear-proof lids for all the dumpsters we have,” said Cathy Sherman, city public information officer, in an email. “The Refuse Division crew are at work putting them all together as time allows and then getting them out in the community.”
Two bear-resistant dumpsters are already in place at the South Harbor and North Harbor. These two dumpsters have phone numbers posted on the side asking residents to text the Refuse Department when they are full.
The city invested approximately $25,000 in the new lids.
The city is also applying for a grant to put an electric fence around the landfill, “to make it much more difficult for the bears to be habituated at the 17-mile landfill,” Sherman said.
During the 2018 bear season, 15 bears were killed in Cordova; nine by residents and six by government agencies. For the Cordova-Valdez unit, nearly 30 bears were killed last summer.
One of those incidents involved a black bear sow, known locally as “harbor bear.” The bear, who weighed close to 200 pounds, was shot on Sept. 8 by Alaska Wildlife Troopers after it was seen dumpster diving, swimming in the harbor, climbing onto boats and walking along the docks.
Questions or comments on the city’s effort to bear-proof waste should be directed to the Public Works Department at 907-424-6200.