A decision on whether to use snares to kill grizzly and black bears was postponed Tuesday by the Alaska Board of Game at its Anchorage meeting, according to the Associated Press.

Currently, black bears can be snared in one area across Cook Inlet from Anchorage. In a portion of that area, grizzly bears can also be taken by snare. Proponents say it’s an effective way of reducing predator populations so more moose calves survive.

The board was considering a proposal by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game to expand snaring to Game Management Unit 19A, which includes the villages of Aniak, Upper Kalskag, Lower Kalskag and Lime Village.

On Friday, former Alaska Gov. Tony Knowles made his first appearance before the board to decry bear snaring as unscientific and unethical.

John Schoen, a retired state bear biologist who helped Knowles with his board testimony, says the ethical problem with grizzly snaring is that it is indiscriminate. It catches any bear that happens by, including sows with cubs. If a sow with cubs is killed, the cubs are doomed to die.

The board could reconsider expansion at its March meeting in Fairbanks.