European nations approved plans on Tuesday to scale back the protection for wolves in a victory for farmers over environmentalists.
The 49 member states of the Bern Convention charged with the protection of wildlife in Europe and some African countries agreed to lower the wolf’s protection status from ‘strictly protected’ to ‘protected’, the Council of Europe said.
The looser protection rules will come into effect from March 2025, allowing nations to hunt for wolves under specific circumstances, to keep them at bay from farmers and the population.
The Bern Convention is an international treaty of the Strasbourg-based Council of Europe in nature conservation which came into force in 1982.
The European Union, which is entirely separate from the Council of Europe, is a party to the convention.
Farmers in many EU member states have been increasingly angered by attacks on livestock by packs of wolves that have thrived in woods and fields close to agricultural land.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen backed the measures and said the outcome was ‘important news for our rural communications and farmers’ who had a right to better protection of their livelihoods. An ardent fan of horses, von der Leyen had a pony that was killed by a wolf two years ago.
Experts and environmental groups estimate there could be up to 19,000 wolves across Europe, with large populations thought to roam in Bulgaria, Greece, Italy, Poland, Romania and Spain. Their numbers are estimated to have grown by 25% over the last decade.
Environmentalists say the animal is far from a potent threat in most nations.
‘The wolf is still endangered in many parts of Europe, and weakening its protection will only lead to further conflict and threaten its recovery,’ said Ilaria Di Silvestre, regional director of policy at the International Fund for Animal Welfare.
Many EU environmental rules and regulations have come under pressure over the past two years, with populist and far-right parties criticising the measures as being thought up by urban elites with little knowledge of rural life.
Centre-right, conservative and far-right members of the European Parliament welcomed the move.
Important news for our rural communities and farmers.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) December 3, 2024
The Bern convention has decided to adjust the protection status of wolves.
Because we need a balanced approach between the preservation of wildlife and the protection of our livelihoods
The 🇪🇺 proposal to lower the protection status of the Wolf under the Bern Convention is a politically motivated U-turn away from a compassionate & science-based approach to nature conservation. This sets a very worrying precedent away from democratic, fact based decision making🐺 pic.twitter.com/CZePJIFCzZ
— Environmental Pillar (@Env_Pillar) December 2, 2024
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