SOUTH JERSEY (KYW Newsradio) — In the interest of public safety, New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is considering rolling back his executive order that bans the hunting of black bears, as the region has seen a rise in the bear population and interactions with humans.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection estimates the population has risen to nearly 3,000, and the DEP predicts it will grow to 4,000 in the next two years.
The Garden State also recorded 62 aggressive bear encounters with humans last year and property damages exceeding $1,000. Incidents were up 237% between January and October of this year compared to last.
According to environmental officials, dense bear populations can lead to a lack of natural food sources, so bears disperse into urban areas.
Murphy signed an executive order in 2018 banning bear hunting as a means to nonlethally maintain the black bear population.
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One environmental conservation group, however, wants the Murphy administration to pump the breaks on reinstating the practice.
New Jersey Sierra Club Director Anjuli Ramos recognized the increase in bear encounters in 2022, but she said the state cannot revert back to the hunt immediately.
“Let’s take a step back,” she said. “Let’s focus on that management plan … and see if we can fix the problem before we start killing bears. … You can’t really just reverse an executive order based on one year’s data.”
Along with potentially reinstating the hunt, the state would implement a trash management pilot program in an effort to advance nonlethal strategies.
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“If you’re going to be launching a pilot program that encourages nonlethal management of bears, why don’t you just go ahead and launch that pilot management plan before you go back to hunting?” Ramos argued.
“It is clear that New Jersey’s black bear population is growing significantly, and nonlethal bear management strategies alone are not enough to mitigate this trend,” Murphy said in a statement.
The state is considering reinstating regulated bear hunting from Dec. 5 through 10 in designated zones. If 20% of the population is not mitigated, the hunting period will be extended.
The New Jersey Fish and Game Council will discuss amendments to the Game Code at its upcoming public meeting on Nov. 15 at 10 a.m. at the New Jersey State Museum, located at 205 W. State St. in Trenton.