and mortality quotas which are structured to provide additional protection for female 

 bears. 



Area Closures: Some comments indicated support for area closures to protect bears and 

 also expressed concerns that any such closures be temporary. With active management 

 as proposed, FWP does not feel that permanent closure of areas to people will be 

 necessary. There may be times and/or places where seasonal closures are appropriate (for 

 example, FWP closes elk winter ranges during certain months) or a closure may be 

 necessary due to concerns over human safety (a bear is feeding on a carcass next to an 

 active trail). Any closures will be site specific. 



Response Time to Conflicts: People suggested that 12 hours may be too long to respond 

 to some conflicts, and others stated that a response within 1 2 hours was unworkable in 

 some cases. FWP acknowledges both concerns and recognizes that both situations can 

 occur. The most rapid response possible is always in the best interest of the management 

 program and is the goal of the plan. 



Relocation of Problem Bears: It was requested that the plan provide information on 

 where problem bears would be relocated. Because these decisions require information 

 such as age/sex of the bear, current land uses, and understanding human activities, etc. 

 this type of detail is not possible in the plan. 



Coal Bed Methane: FWP acknowledges that this type of land management can affect 

 grizzly bears. FWP will seek to have the needs of the bear placed and considered in 

 every appropriate plaiming and permitting process as outlined in the management plan. 



Funding: It was requested that FWP document all funding and have in place all 

 commitments for ongoing funding needs. This is not possible because FWP and others 

 operate on annual budget cycles sensitive to changing needs and priorities. A review of 

 past funding indicates that the types of programs recommended in the plan receive 

 fiinding support. Some commentors suggested using a gas tax, or a portion of the bed 

 tax, to allow Americans to help support these efforts. FWP encourages those interested 

 in these programs to pursue additional funding opportunities with their state and/or 

 federal representatives. 



Local Control: Local control is viewed by some as an excuse to do "bad things" to 

 habitat and bears. This is not the intent of this plan. While FWP has acknowledged the 

 national interest in the species and feels it provides long-term security of the population 

 to meet that need, those living and working in these areas need to be active participants in 

 all phases of plan development, implementation, and evaluation for it to be a success. 



Damage to Bee Hives: There was support for re-evaluating the guidelines for damage to 

 beehives as recommend in the plan. 



Females with Cubs Monitoring: It was stated that the use of this monitoring parameter 

 was inappropriate. Current and ongoing research demonstrates that there is value in 



25 



