Anchorage mayor nixes spiked fence ban aimed at protecting moose

JUNEAU Alaska (Reuters) - A proposed Anchorage ban on spiked metal fences aimed at protecting moose from impaling themselves is off the books after a veto by the city's mayor, also a candidate for Lieutenant Governor, his office said on Thursday.

Anchorage Mayor Dan Sullivan, who is running mate to Governor Sean Parnell in his re-election bid, vetoed the ban on Tuesday one week after the city's Assembly narrowly approved the restrictions by a 6-5 vote.

Sullivan issued a veto memo calling the measure well-intentioned, but added that the "cost/benefit analysis does not warrant this level of government intrusion."

The ordinance would have required palisade-style fences standing shorter than 7 feet to be compliant with the new law banning such spiked structures within five years, and would block new such fences from being built.

Sullivan wrote that the incidence of moose gorings was too low for such changes, and cited property owners' preference for fences that add security and aesthetics.

Biologists estimate that between two and four moose get impaled annually while trying to clear these fences, according to an Alaska Dispatch News report.

"We could save a lot more moose by practicing safer driving habits on our roadways at no cost to taxpayers and property owners," Sullivan wrote of the interactions between humans and moose in his city of nearly 300,000 people.

"Or, by not planting trees that are an attractive nuisance to moose ? trees that draw moose into roadways or actually make moose sick," wrote.

Sullivan later told the Dispatch News that he was willing to consider new approaches to what he called an "overly broad approach to what has been identified as a very limited problem."

The Assembly would have to produce eight votes for a veto override.

(Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Sandra Maler)

WhatsAppFacebookTwitterLinkedinBeloudBluesky