Major blow to science and biodiversity after vote by EU member states
Bleak prospects for Europe's wolves: their shooting is to be made easier in future - contrary to scientific reason.
© Heinz LehmannA majority of EU Member States agreed to adopt the European Commission's proposal to downgrade the protection status of the wolf under the Bern Convention. This shift opens the door to wolf culling as a false solution to livestock depredation, which runs counter to Europe’s commitment to safeguard and restore biodiversity. The decision which cannot be scientifically justified went through after Germany changed its position from abstention to support.
With this decision, Member States have chosen to ignore the call of over 300 civil society organisations, among others EuroNatur, and more than 300,000 people urging them to follow scientific recommendations and step up efforts to foster coexistence with large carnivores through preventive measures.
Today’s decision not only undermines decades of conservation efforts but also represents a significant setback for what has been hailed as one of the European Union's most notable wildlife conservation successes: the comeback of the wolf from near extinction in many parts of Europe.
Wolves are strictly protected under both the Bern Convention and the EU Habitats Directive, serving as a keystone species vital for healthy ecosystems and biodiversity across Europe. Weakening their protection will hinder the ongoing recovery of wolf populations.
‘The EU's decision will not only destabilise the still fragile wolf populations in large parts of Europe, but also undermine the significant progress made towards a coexistence of humans and wolves,’ says Antje Henkelmann, project manager and wolf expert at EuroNatur. ‘Only efficient herd protection can prevent livestock kills. Instead, the EU is focussing on symbolic but inefficient culls. With her turnaround, the Federal Environment Minister is not only weakening wolf protection, but also giving in to populist demands that are of little use to livestock farmers,’’ says the biologist.
The proposal will now be formally adopted at the next EU Council meeting on 26 September, in time for the European Commission to submit it to the Bern Convention’s Standing Committee of the Bern Convention. The EU will support the proposal as a unified block for the last vote scheduled to take place in December.