Leavenworth considers requiring bear-resistant garbage cans

LEAVENWORTH — In an effort to reduce bear habituation to human food sources, the City of Leavenworth is considering making bear-resistant cans a requirement for garbage collection.

The proposal was discussed during the Leavenworth City Council’s Sept. 8 study session, where city officials and Waste Management (WM) representatives shared potential low-cost options for providing bear-resistant residential and commercial garbage cans.

“I was very pleased with the conversation and that the city is really looking at trying to support this, along with Waste Management,” said Leavenworth resident Camille Stemm.

In 2022, Stemm was attacked by a bear while letting her dog out of her Leavenworth residence. She sustained significant injuries, and the bear was lethally removed by Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). Since then, she said she has been an avid supporter of BearWise practices.

“This is just so important. It's not frivolous. I can tell you that. I'm lucky to be alive,” said Stemm.

The discussion comes amid increased human-bear conflicts and public calls for action. According to WDFW Wildlife Program Manager Justin Haug, the agency received 40 bear-related calls in Chelan County last year, 30 of which were in the broader Leavenworth area, or 98826 zip code. The year prior, of the 78 calls made in the county, all but 10 were from the Leavenworth area.

“This year, to date, there have been 95 bear-related calls. We haven't broken down where they're going, but it's a significant increase from the last two years,” said Haug.

Unsecured garbage and other human-provided food sources offer easy and efficient meals for bears, encouraging them to move deeper into neighborhoods and become habituated. Once they find access to food, they’re likely to keep coming back to it, according to WDFW officials. With increased human-bear interactions, there’s more potential for heightened conflict, resulting in a bear either being relocated or lethally removed.

According to WDFW’s incident reporting map, four bears have been lethally removed in Chelan County so far this year.

During a July council meeting, several members of the public urged the city to do more to reduce the attraction of bears into residential and commercial areas, such as securing garbage. During the public comment period, resident Marwa Mahmoud told the council about a recent situation in which a bear had gotten into a trash can in her neighborhood; rather than deter the bear, neighbors watched from an unsafe distance.

Mahmoud asked the Leavenworth City Council to consider subsidizing bear-resistant cans for residents and businesses as an answer to prevent bears from becoming habituated to trash as their food source. After the meeting, Mahmoud started an online petition calling on the city for the change, collecting 159 signatures as of Sept. 8.

Though city officials said they were already working on a draft BearWise ordinance with WDFW at the time, the request prompted further conversations with WM.

“We've dealt with the bear issue for years…and I think we've found something that really is doable and cost-effective, and so it's kind of exciting,” said Tyler Mackay, WM’s Public Sector Solutions Manager for Central Washington.

With the exception of multi-family accounts, WM currently provides solid waste removal services for the residential areas of the city, totaling approximately 850 accounts. Residents have the option to use a bear-resistant can for just under $15 per month in additional cost, but it is not required.

With the current subscription model, Mackay explained that demand is unpredictable, requiring WM to spend more on small quantity orders. If bear-resistant cans were mandated, that cost could be much lower. WM could save on costs upfront by placing a large quantity order, and also plan ahead for replacements, he added.

Furthermore, if the mandate was included in a renewed contract with WM, that cost could be spread out over 10 years. However, it would require renewing early, as the city currently has just over two years left on its current contract with WM.

“We're pretty confident that we could get that cost down to somewhere around $5, which would be much more manageable,” Mackay said.

Finding a solution for commercial accounts has been more challenging, but Mackay believes there may be an answer.

Historically, WM has not been able to serve downtown Leavenworth, due to its narrow alleyways and seven-days-a-week service demands. Instead, commercial accounts have fallen under the umbrella of the City of Leavenworth’s Refuse Division, which has struggled to protect commercial garbage from bears.

“We've been grappling with this for years. No one makes a bear-resistant container that is like the 300-gallon container that we use currently…Our machines can't service the metal locking containers that Waste Management has,” said City Administrator Matthew Selby.

After reevaluating, Mackay said WM’s trucks could actually fit in the narrow alleyways. As for the daily service needs, WM could offer larger, locking containers and reduce pick-up frequency. It could also open the door to recycling services for downtown customers.

Under this arrangement, Selby noted that city crews could still oversee garbage collection at the pedestrian level. It could also maintain cardboard collection, which is the city’s only profitable recycling stream.

“We could retain our trash trucks, retain our crew, and just not do the commercial accounts the way they're currently being done,” said Selby.

The Leavenworth City Council was collectively supportive of the preliminary suggestions, asking city staff and WM to return with more detailed proposals for contracts regarding bear-resistant residential and commercial garbage collection, as well as commercial recycling.

“This is really great news because this could lead to virtually everyone in the city of Leavenworth having bear-resistant containers, which is the most important step to reduce human and bear conflict in this community,” said community member Gordon Congdon.

Taylor Caldwell: 509-433-7276 or taylor@ward.media