Gatlinburg Will Host An Open House On Best Practices For Bear Safety

Photo credit: Bearwise.org

The City of Gatlinburg, Tennessee Wildlife Resource Agency, and the newly-formed Smokies BearWise Task Force are teaming up for an open house free of charge to the public on Tuesday, August 13 from 9:30 a.m. until 4 p.m. This will be held at the American Legion Building at 1222 East Parkway across from Food City. The aim will be to educate residents, businesses, and visitors about safe bear management practices with the hope of reducing interactions between humans and bears.

After a brief introduction, Great Smoky Mountains National Park wildlife biologist, Ryan Williamson, will make his first of two presentations—10 and 1:30—on bear behavior. The rest of the event will be an open house style gathering where the public is free to browse the literature and ask questions to TWRA and the Gatlinburg Police Department.

One of the stations at the event will include BearWise signage and brochures. This is why it will be important for as many people to attend as possible. Rental owners and hoteliers will have access to information regarding best practices to prevent the scourge of human and bear interactions among guests.

The City of Gatlinburg has been working with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency since 1999. It began with funding for a bear management officer position. Both have also worked in tandem by crafting city ordinances, which have included the recent bear-resistant receptacles being required. The newly organized BearWise Taskforce is dedicated to promoting bear awareness and safety through education and community outreach. This organization is comprised of local leaders, business owners, and TWRA members to help with saving the bears and spreading the word on how to deal with ongoing issues involving bear interactions.

I know many of you are frustrated with how the city has or hasn’t dealt with the seemingly increasing bear encounters in Gatlinburg. If you are one of those people, or are just wanting to find out what the city is now doing, I suggest attending this open house. I have already prioritized it by asking for the day off work, so I will be there to gather all the information and report back to you all. I think this is a huge step in the right direction, and I applaud the City of Gatlinburg for doing this. Let’s all work together and do something positive by getting fully involved in these efforts. This doesn’t work if we’re all spewing vitriol on social media. It’s up to us regular folks to change the narrative and, of course, keep the Smoky Mountain black bears alive. For more information, check out the links below.

Website: https://bearwise.org/

Facebook: Smokies BearWise and BearWise

Thank you for reading and subscribing to A Gatlinburg NOW Publication. I want to inform and educate any potential visitors to this beautiful tourist town in any way possible. I think this particular event may increase my knowledge further, and I’m seeking to do a better job spreading the word on my Facebook Page, along with sharing daily experiences and reviews from my home. See you all next time!