Mock bear boxes to be outlawed by STR
This construction bin on Gardner Mountain no longer closes all the way. Photo/LTN
By Kathryn Reed
Construction boxes are about to be banned by South Tahoe Refuse.
“I think South Tahoe Refuse should stop servicing these. They are not a proper garbage container,” Tom Bruen, attorney for the South Lake Tahoe Basin Waste Management Authority, said. “Otherwise they will proliferate, and they are not bear boxes.”
The containers are a couple feet tall. A kitchen can might fit inside, but not the standard 32-gallon trash container. A big problem is people are throwing trash in them without bagging it first. And being low to the ground allows them to easily be buried in the snow.
Animals can get into them, and are even able to move them because they are not secure. This compares to bear boxes that are cemented into place.
John Tillman with STR said about 100 are in the company’s service area, with many being in Nevada. He says they are a growing problem.
The waste management authority board said STR should send letters to customers using these devices to say they are not allowed and will not be serviced.
Whoa there! I’ve used a construction box that holds 2-32 gallon cans and secured with two u-bolts for 20 years without a single incursion by a bear. Meanwhile people purchase and have these “bear boxes” installed and regularly have the doors torn open; I’ve had to clean up after a neighbor too often to even consider replacing mine.