Romania’s parliament has authorized the culling of virtually 500 bears this 12 months so as to regulate the “overpopulation” of the safe species after a dangerous assault on a hiker sparked national outcry.
The rustic is house to eight,000 brown bears, in line with the surroundings ministry, Europe’s biggest brown endure inhabitants out of doors Russia.
Bears have killed 26 other folks and critically injured 274 others over the last two decades in Romania, the ministry mentioned this 12 months.
After a tender hiker was once mauled to loss of life on a well-liked path in Romania’s Carpathian mountains final week, the top minister, Marcel Ciolacu, summoned lawmakers again from their summer season recess to wait an emergency consultation of parliament.
In addition to adopting regulation on Monday to regulate the brown endure inhabitants, the parliament held a second of silence within the 19-year-old hiker’s reminiscence.
The brand new regulation authorises the culling of 481 bears in 2024, greater than two times final 12 months’s general of 220. Lawmakers argued that the bears’ overpopulation had resulted in an build up in assaults, whilst admitting that the regulation would no longer save you assaults at some point.
Environmental teams denounced the measure. “The regulation solves completely not anything,” mentioned Calin Ardelean, a International Natural world Fund biologist, arguing that the focal point will have to be shifted in opposition to “prevention and intervention” in addition to “drawback bears”.
In step with WWF Romania, culls won’t treatment the issue except measures are installed position to stay bears clear of communities, comparable to higher waste control or fighting other folks from feeding animals.
In 2023 about 7,500 emergency calls to sign endure sightings have been recorded, greater than double the choice of the former 12 months, in line with knowledge introduced final week by way of Romanian government.
This article by way of Agence France-Presse in Bucharest was once first revealed by way of The Parent on 15 July 2024. Lead Symbol: A endure on a street in Covasna, Romania, in September 2023. The rustic is house to about 8,000 brown bears. {Photograph}: Andrei Pungovschi/AFP/Getty Photographs.
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