Dec. 19, 2000-- A battle over bears went before the Utah Wildlife Board today. Hunters say they want to go after bears in the spring, but critics say that will turn bear cubs into starving orphans.

Today the board approved the hunt, with some conditions. Environment Specialist John Hollenhorst has the story.

The hunting of bears in springtime was banned in 1993. Since then, there's been more bear trouble, state officials say. More sheep kills, more human encounters, more bears killed by government trappers.

DON PEAY/SPORTSMEN FOR FISH & WILDLIFE: "WELL THE SPORTSMEN TOLD THEM, IF YOU ELIMINATE THE SPRING HUNT BASED ON AN EMOTIONAL DECISION AND NOT FACTS, THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN."

Hunters asked the Wildlife Board to restore the spring hunt. That provoked an outcry from animal lovers, environmentalists and anti-hunting groups.

KIRK ROBINSON/WESTERN WILDLIFE CONSERVANCY: "WELL, PEOPLE JUST DON'T LIKE THE IDEA OF BABY BEARS STARVING TO DEATH, JUST BECAUSE HUNTERS WANT TO KILL THEIR PARENTS."

JOHN KIMBALL/UTAH DIV. OF WILDLIFE RESOURCES: "YES, IF YOU KILL A FEMALE AND SHE HAS YOUNG WITH HER, THOSE YOUNG ARE PROBABLY GOING TO DIE."

State biologists worked out a compromise: a short spring hunting season ending in Mid-May.

JOHN KIMBALL/UTAH DIV. OF WILDLIFE RESOURCES: "FEMALES WITH CUBS COME OUT OF HIBERNATION LATER IN THE SPRING THAN MALES."

But hunters say hunting is poor in early spring. They wanted to hunt into late May, when more bears come out of hibernation and start causing trouble for humans and livestock.

DON PEAY/SPORTSMEN FOR FISH & WILDLIFE: "SO OUR POSITION IS, WE OUGHT TO ALLOW SPORTSMEN TO TAKE AS MANY OF THE BEARS THAT NEED TO BE HARVESTED AS TO HAVE GOVERNMENT TRAPPERS DO IT."

KIRK ROBINSON/WESTERN WILDLIFE CONSERVANCY: "THE WORRY IS THAT RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF MAY IS WHEN THE FEMALES BEGIN TO SHOW UP IN THE KILL. AND THE NEWBORN CUBS OF THE YEAR INEVITABLY DIE."

JOHN HOLLENHORST REPORTING: "HUNTERS GOT MOST OF WHAT THEY WANTED. THE WILDLIFE BOARD APPROVED A SPRING HUNT AND EXTENDED THE CLOSING DATE A WEEK, TO MAY 21ST. BUT THEY'RE REQUIRING MANDATORY ORIENTATION FOR SPRING BEAR HUNTERS, IN HOPES OF REDUCING THE NUMBER OF FEMALES THAT ARE KILLED."

The spring hunt will be allowed in four of the state's 19 hunting regions. It's considered an experiment and is expected to be in place for the next five years.