BOULDER, Colo.-- About 200 people have been ticketed for violating the bear ordinance regarding trash in Boulder this summer, city officials confirmed to Denver7.
The ordinance requires all residents in the "secure trash regulation zone" use bear-resistant trash containers and dumpsters.
"If you put your containers outside at any time (even just before pick-up on the morning of collection), the carts or containers must be bear-resistant," the ordinance says.
There are no warnings for violating the ordinance. The first offense is a $250 fine, the second offense is a $500 fine and the third offense is a $1,000 fine.
"The community knew months in advance that this was coming," city spokeswoman Shannon Cordingly told Denver7. "It [the ordinance] was already in effect for part of Boulder, but it was expanded because there were issues in other parts of the city."
About 20 people have appealed their citations.