The European Commission has taken the first step to pave the way for hunting wolves by proposing to change their international status from "under strict protection" to "under protection", citing "increasing populations and negative impacts".
Following an analysis, the Commission proposed changing the status of wolves from "strictly protected" to "under protection", and also proposed updating the legal framework to give local authorities "more flexibility where necessary".
The proposal was justified by "the growing population of wolf packs, attacks on livestock and conflicts between farmers and hunters".
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, "The return of wolves is good news for biodiversity in Europe. But the concentration of wolf packs in some parts of Europe has become a real danger, especially for livestock. Local authorities are demanding more flexibility to manage the density of wolf packs more effectively and this should be facilitated at European level. I firmly believe that we can and will find targeted solutions to protect both biodiversity and rural livelihoods."
The Commission's proposal, if adopted by member states, will be submitted by the EU to the Standing Committee of the Berne Convention.
Depending on the outcome of the decisions to be taken in the Council and the Committee, the Commission will be able to propose a change in the protection status of wolves within the EU.
Changing the protection status would allow wolves to be hunted in the EU.
Reaction from WWF
In a statement, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) reacted to the proposal, saying that Von der Leyen "sacrificed her achievements so far for her political interests".
WWF argued that the proposal was presented without scientific evidence to support the claims and called on EU member states to reject it.
WWF has never before been a member of the EU Commission
Emphasizing that the President did not propose downgrading the status of a species under international protection, he reminded that the EU rejected the same proposal submitted by Switzerland in November.
