Having met bear-management goals and attempting to reduce human-bear encounters, the Utah Wildlife Board increased the number of permits for hunts in the spring and fall.

At its last meeting, the Utah Wildlife Board raised the number of permits from 248 issued in 2007 to 299.

Kevin Bunnell, mammals program coordinator for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, said that based on past statistics, the extra 51 permits will translate into the taking of about 15 more bears.

Utah's bear management plan has three goals: Keep the percentage of female bears taken by hunters below 40 percent; keep the average age of bears taken by hunters above 5 years old; and keep the adult survival rate above 78 percent.

Those goals were met in 2007, he said.

"The goals have been met every year since the plan was implemented in 2000. When the goals are met, we know Utah's black bears are doing well," Bunnell said. "And because the goals were met, we know that Utah's bear populations can support some increased harvest without having a negative effect on the overall population."

Most of the additional permits will be issued in areas in northern, central and northeastern Utah, where most of the people-bear encounters occurred in 2007.

"Taking a few more bears should help reduce the chance that people and bears run into conflict in these areas this year," he added.

Even though a few more bear permits will be available in 2008, Bunnell said taking more bears is not a long-term solution to reducing conflicts between bears and people.

The solution, he said, is people doing the right things in the outdoors. He stresses that the key to preventing problems with bears is to not attract them in the first place.

"Not attracting bears is the key to preventing problems for you and for the bears. And it's simple to avoid attracting bears to your campsite or cabin area — don't scatter food and garbage around these areas, and keep your food in places where bears can't get to it."

Bunnell provides the following tips and advice:

• Never feed a bear.

• Keep campsites, as well as areas surrounding cabin sites and rural homes, free of scattered food and garbage. Food attracts bears and encourages them to remain in the area. Secure all of the garbage, and clean barbecue grills and store them inside a secure facility.

• Do not leave food in coolers, out on picnic tables or any place where a bear can get to it.

• When camping, store food where bears cannot reach it. Never keep food in a tent. Store food in the trunk of a car or in a bear-proof container.

• Don't keep anything in your tent that has a strong smell. This includes personal hygiene items, such as soap, deodorant or perfume. Dirty dishwater can also attract bears.

• Separate cooking areas from sleeping areas.

• Don't sleep in the clothes worn while cooking or worn while cleaning fish. Leave those clothes, along with anything used to prepare, cook, eat or clean up food — such as utensils and rags — at the cooking area or sealed inside a vehicle.

People can learn more about bears and how to stay safe in bear country by reading the DWR's Living in Black Bear Country brochure. The free brochure is available online at www.wildlife.utah.gov/bear/bear_safety.php