Romania’s government proposed on Thursday to triple the number of bears to be culled each year in an effort to control the protected species’ “overpopulation”, drawing the ire of environmental groups, according to Euractiv.
The proposal is based on a recent estimate by Romania’s Ministry of environment that puts the number of bears in the country at approximately 7,500 to 8,000.
An increasing number of confrontations with humans has spurred the proposal as well. From 2016 to 2021, Romania recorded 154 bear attacks, which resulted in 14 deaths and 158 injuries, the ministry said.
The proposal could see as many as 426 bears shot and killed, up from 140 individuals last year.
The brown bear is among 1,200 species protected by the European Union’s habitats directive.
Romania banned trophy hunting in 2016, but has allowed the killing of hundreds of so-called “nuisance bears” under a system of waivers.
In addition to “specialized technical personnel”, hunters will also be allowed to shoot the animals under the new rules.
Earlier this month, Environment Minister Barna Tanczos defended the proposal “because too many people died, because we paid too much money in compensations, because the attacks are on the rise and it’s our duty to protect human life”.
A longtime supporter of managing the bear population, including through shooting, Tanczos said the “extraction” would be done under strict guidelines and monitoring.
Environmental groups have denounced the proposal, calling it an authorisation of an open season for trophy hunting.
The proposal “risks bringing a new infringement procedure against Romania for non-compliance with the European directives that strictly protect this species,” said Greenpeace Romania, calling it a “cynical proposal to solve bear management through commercial hunting.”
Romania has long been known as having the largest bear population in the European Union, with an estimated 6,000 animals.
But experts have warned that the actual number of bears roaming the Carpathians remains unknown, saying the country uses an outdated method for counting the species.
In 2021, Romania said it would conduct a census of its protected brown bears using DNA for the first time.
So far only 1,200 of about 18,000 samples have been collected, and initial results are not expected for several years.