Babb dump raises bear concerns

Near the eastern edge of Many Glacier in Glacier National Park is a large pile of trash and several overflowing dumpsters in Babb on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation. The open dump is not only an eyesore, but also an attractant for bears, residents who live near it are saying.

The site has been a problem for years, Dan Carney, wildlife biologist with the Blackfeet Fish and Wildlife Department, said. Last year, they released two bears that were stuck inside the dumpsters.

Carney decided to get involved last year by gathering money for a chain-link fence surrounding the dump and an electric fence around the first fence. He said this is a similar set up to dumps in Coram and Middle Fork of the Flathead River. He had a contract ready to install the fences this year, but then he heard some news that made him stop all of his plans. Blackfeet Environmental Office Director Gerald Wagner told Carney they have a grant for individual household 96-gallon trashcans with bear resistant lids. This would include home pickup once a week.

Carney stopped the contract because he didn't want a $30,000 fence to "just sit there" if the dump won't be needed anymore.

"It will continue to be a problem until they get those cans," he said. "It's dangerous for bears, it's dangerous for people. It's a terrible situation, and it's been going on a long time."

Carney has seen tracks of female bears with their cubs at the site, but hasn't trapped bears there yet.

"There is no sense" in removing the bears familiar to the site, when the trash will continue to attract other bears, he said. "They won't even go in the traps because there is so much available food."

In the past, Blackfeet Solid Waste Management has been relied on to solve the problem, but that won't continue to happen, Carney said.

The Solid Waste Department is aware of the dump's condition.

"It's really not our fault," Carol Conway, administrative assistant at Blackfeet Solid Waste Management, said. "We just put them (dumpsters) out there."

She explained that people don't throw garbage into the "big, tall cans," but they leave it on the ground. The trash in the pile includes washing machines, TVs and microwaves, which are supposed to be hauled by the dumper to the transfer site in Browning, Carney said. Two 40-yard containers are on the site, but they're also brim-full.

Tribal waste management hires a contractor to move the trash from the ground to the containers, so they can empty them, she said.

The Tribe's goal is to have individual containers similar to what the grant would provide. But, Conway said that they don't have the funding for it. Individual containers are already being used in East Glacier.

Amy Royer, a local resident found bear scat when visiting the site in July. Royer is a seasonal resident of Duck Lake, which is almost four miles east of Babb. She sent a letter of concern to the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council July 23.

"After visiting the site last week, the volume of human waste and garage was sickening. In addition, bear scat was everywhere, confirming that bears are frequenting the site," Royer said. "An inadequate dump site for collection and pickup of garbage is far reaching both environmentally and socially for the residents of Babb and surrounding areas. For the wildlife, the consequences are dire. It is a known fact that a fed bear is a dead bear, and can include possible human danger and harm. By allowing this dump site to be available to bears, the likelihood of human-bear confrontations is real."

But so far, the garbage just keeps piling up and as fall approaches and bears look to put on weight, more are sure to find the dump's allure. The dump isn't far from the St. Mary River and the Rocky Mountain Front is across U.S. Highway 89 from the site. The dump is just under six miles from the Many Glacier entrance to the Park - an afternoon stroll for a hungry bear.

Chris Servheen, the grizzly bear recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, said last week the Service would be willing to help with the cost of fencing if need be, but the larger issue of trash removal is a tribal problem that will take significant funding to fix.

Glacier National Park spokesperson Michelle Fidler said the Park, wouldn't get involved.

"It's outside of our jurisdiction," she said.