The Romanian Ministry of the Environment justified this decision to “address an imminent danger”.
The Romanian government announced on Thursday its intention to authorize the slaughter of 426 bears in 2023 against 140 last year, arguing that this protected species has developed too much and that attacks have multiplied.
This decision is necessary to “address an imminent danger”, wrote the Ministry of the Environment in an order.
“There is no satisfactory alternative as problem bears resettled by the hundreds have returned to their original habitat or created new conflicts,” he added.
In total, Bucharest recorded 154 attacks between 2016 and 2021: 158 people were injured and 14 killed, according to official figures. “We are proposing this measure because too many people have died and the compensation has been too high,” Minister Barna Tanczos recently judged, saying he wanted to return to “optimal density”.
Greenpeace denounces a “cynical decision”
Romania is home to the largest population of bears in Europe (excluding Russia), according to the government, which estimates between 7,500 and 8,000 the number of individuals present on its territory.
In a statement, Greenpeace denounced a “cynical decision” contrary to European directives, believing that the country is exposing itself to “a new infringement procedure”.
The NGO intends to file an appeal against this increase in quotas, authorizing the return of a “commercial hunt”. Until now, slaughter was only the responsibility of sworn personnel.
Sport hunting, which attracted amateurs from all over the world in search of a “trophy”, has been banned since 2016 to protect the species.
No real census of the animal in the country
Romania bases its scientific monitoring of the bear population on the collection of clues left in the field, such as footprints, a method that does not allow for an exact census.
The authorities had announced in 2021 the gradual implementation of genetic typing to determine the identity of each animal, via the field collection of droppings and hair.
But only 1,200 samples have been collected to date out of a target of 18,000, said the minister.
