The wolf decision causes excitement: hunt for the robbers allowed!

The wolf decision causes excitement: hunt for the robbers allowed!

Kärnten, Österreich - On Tuesday, the wolf's protection status was downgraded as part of the Bern Convention, which ensures controversies. Instead of "strictly protected", the wolf is now classified as "protected". This decision opens up more options for hunting wolves without fully lifting protection. The governor of Carinthia, Martin Gruber, commented extremely positively and described the decision as an important step that finally shows the rethink in dealing with the predator Wolf. Since 2022, over 500 risk oils from settlement areas have been granted in Carinthia and 16 problem-animal wolves have been taken, which underlines the urgency of this change, as Kleine Zeitung reported.

reactions and opinions on the decision

The decision was welcomed by agricultural representatives who see a necessary measure to protect farm animals in the downgrading of the protection status. The Carinthian FPÖ boss Erwin Angerer described this step as long overdue and called for a rapid implementation of the legal regulation to enable the hunt for wolves, similar to other predators. At the same time, animal rights activists like Martin Balluch from VGT said great concern about this development, which in their opinion is a step -down signal for animal welfare in Europe. According to the Balluch, the reason for protecting people from wolves is not durable, since there has been no threats from wolves in Germany for years, where over 2,000 animals live without having to endanger, like My district reported.

For the Carinthian sponsors of a mitigated protection status, it is now crucial that the EU Commission also adapts the Flora-Fauna Habitat Directive to find a nationwide solution that takes into account the concerns of the affected population. At this point you can see a paradigm shift in the discussion about the wolves in Carinthia and hope that this development could stimulate other EU countries to rethink their rules.