ROMA. More than 300 environmental and animal welfare organisations are calling on the European Union Member States to reject the European Commission’s proposal to downgrade the wolf’s protection status under the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (the so-called Bern Convention) from “strictly protected” to simply “protected”.
The broad coalition of associations urges the European Union and its Member States to intensify their efforts to promote, through concrete prevention measures, the coexistence between human activities and large carnivores, thus safeguarding the important goals achieved in recent decades for the conservation of species at risk and in danger of extinction.
The European coalition, which WWF also supports, has recently launched a petition, signed to date by 300,000 European citizensto stop wolf hunting in Europe and to ensure adequate protection of a species essential for biodiversity.
The coalition of civil society organisations and European citizens call on the Union to Promote coexistence: strengthen preventive measures, such as the use of fences and sheepdogs, and make them more accessible to farmers.
Apply protection: ensure the elimination of poaching and illegal hunting of wolves and comply with the Habitats Directive.
Raise awareness: carry out scientific dissemination and environmental education activities on the ecological and socio-economic benefits of the Wolf and the protection of its habitats.
Respect science: base any change in the protection status of the Wolf on scientific data acquired and rigorously evaluated and not on political positions.
Explains Dante CasertaHead of Legal and Institutional Affairs of WWF Italy: “In the coming days, Member States will decide whether or not to approve the European Commission’s proposal on the downgrading of wolf protection in Europe. WWF throughout Europe is opposing this choice and as WWF Italy we strongly ask the Italian Government and the Minister of the Environment Pichetto Fratin in particular to oppose the Commission’s anti-scientific proposal. Science and public opinion have expressed themselves clearly to date: the downgrading of the wolf’s protection status – both under the unitary legislation and the Bern Convention – is not justified. Even the Court of Justice of the European Union has recently ruled twice on the need to guarantee rigorous protection of the wolf under the Habitats Directive. At the Italian level, we have always asked for the approval of the new Wolf Management Plan with the strengthening and implementation of adequate prevention measures that can allow peaceful coexistence between wolves and humans. We need to restart a national table to address the issue seriously with an approach based on science and discussion between all interested parties”.
2024-09-21 03:13:24