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Thursday, July 26, 2007

Editorial: Bear Educator Deserves Honor


    To look at a map of the territory covered by the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies is to appreciate the magnitude of what Jan Hayes has accomplished.
    The 23 states and Canadian provinces encompass 3.7 million square miles, according to association literature. And from that vast area, Hayes was selected recently as the Outstanding Citizen Wildlife Contributor of the Year for 2007.
    An East Mountains resident, Hayes is well-known in the area and throughout New Mexico for her work on behalf of black bears. She founded Sandia Mountain BearWatch, a bear awareness and wildlife preservation group, 13 years ago.
    BearWatch works to educate homeowners about avoiding conflicts with bears, and Hayes has worked with bear hunters on bear management issues and also arranged to get bear-proof trash containers installed in the Sandia Mountains.
    It is a sign of Hayes' diplomacy and ability to bring diverse interests together that she was nominated for this honor by the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish. The agency and BearWatch have sometimes been at odds over the years, but state officials obviously recognize that Hayes is driven not by some political agenda but by genuine concern for wildlife.
    This award is something of which Hayes and everyone in the East Mountains should be proud.