$500M for child care centers........................... PAGE 5 Wild fire season begins. . ........................... PAGE 10
May 16, 2023
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Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife issues bear advisory JEREMY C. RUARK Country Media, Inc. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) is advising coastal residents that with spring comes the emergence of black bears from their dens in search of food. “Now is the prime time to look around your property and make sure food sources attractive to bears are secure and inaccessible,” The ODFW states in a release. “If you live along the Oregon Coast or own or manage coastal rental property, consider using bear-resistant trash cans.” According to the ODFW, a bear’s strongest sense is smell and everything from trash cans to grill drippings can bring them to your property. Finding your trash spread out across the yard or driveway can certainly ruin your day, but the consequences could be much more severe. If bears become habituated to humans, too comfortable
around people, they could pose a serious threat to human safety. “A bear that loses its wariness of people and becomes conditioned to human-provided sources of food may be humanely killed, the ODFW release states. “This is often the only option to protect humans and ultimately to protect the larger bear population from learning the same behavior.” Bear background Bears, like all wildlife, have a specialized diet that coincides with seasonal changes. Access to human-provided food can negatively impact their health, lead to conflict with humans and in many cases have fatal consequences. Bears have a great memory when it comes to food. Not only will they remember where they have found food before, including trash, but female bears will also pass this knowledge down to their young. Intentionally or unintentionally feeding bears can negatively affect
multiple generations of bears. Most conflict between humans and bears is preventable. Bears don’t want to be around humans, but the prospect of an easy meal is often too good to resist. Removing things that attract them to the area is the most important thing you can do to protect people and ensure bears stay wild. The ODFW recommends that residents follow these BearWise tips: Never feed or approach bears. Feeding bears, intentionally or unintentionally, will cause them to associate humans with food. It is also against the law in Oregon (ORS 496.730). Secure food, garbage and recycling. Please ensure that your trash and dumpsters are secure from bears by using commercially available garbage cans, metal bars over dumpsters, fully enclosed trash storage, or by storing garbage inside. Take trash out immediately before pick-up, not the night before. Wash garbage cans with bleach to reduce their smell. Food See BEARS, Page 11
Second sinkhole appears at Cape K
Courtesy photo from the OPRD The new sinkhole measures about 10 feet across and about 30 feet deep and developed within the safety fence of the first sinkhole in the northwest corner of the lower dune. JEREMY C. RUARK Country Media, Inc. A second, deeper sinkhole has appeared at the Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area at Pacific City.
Oregon Parks and Recreation Department officials are asking visitors to use caution and to stay away from the area. The second sinkhole was discovered Monday
about 10 inches away from the first, which appeared in January. The new sinkhole measures about 10 feet across and about 30 feet deep and developed within the safety fence of the
first sinkhole in the northwest corner of the lower dune. Park staff learned about the additional sinkhole See HOLE, Page 11
Stolen SNAP benefits will be replaced STAFF REPORT Country Media, Inc. The Oregon Department of Human Services will replace Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits for victims of electronic theft who have had benefits stolen from their Electrotonic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards.
Electronic theft includes card skimming, card cloning and other similar methods. The replacements to replace SNAP benefits that were stolen electronically on or after Oct. 1, 2022, is scheduled to begin May 22. After May 22, people in Oregon whose SNAP benefits were stolen should
request replacement benefits immediately. People who know their SNAP benefits were stolen between Oct. 1, 2022, and May 22, 2023, must request replacement benefits by June 21, 2023. ODHS cannot replace benefits that were stolen before Oct. 1, 2022. People who discover their SNAP benefits were
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VOL. 96 NO. 20
See SNAP, Page 11
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stolen after May 22 will have 30 days from the date they discover the theft to request replacement benefits. “We know that many individuals and families in Oregon rely on the food assistance they receive through their EBT cards to meet their basic needs and
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