The Japanese government will now allow hunters to shoot bears in populated areas after dangerous human encounters with the wild animals hit record levels.
The revised wildlife protection and management law, which was approved by the cabinet Friday, allows ’emergency shootings’ following complaints that hunters were hampered by red tape.
The environment ministry hopes to present the bill to parliament in the coming months and get it enacted before autumn, when bear sightings typically surge.
Currently, shooting animals such as bears or wild boar in residential areas is forbidden.
It comes as the country battles a bear attack crisis that saw 219 people attacked by bears in 12 months to April 2024, with six human fatalities – the highest since statistics began nearly two decades ago.
Climate change affecting bear food sources and hibernation times, along with depopulation caused by an ageing society, are causing the animals to venture into towns more frequently.
More than 9,000 bears were killed in Japan in the 12 months leading to April 2024.
A boat operator who provided transport to Nishikawa at the lake reportedly witnessed a bear that had fishing boots dangling from its mouth on that same day.
The remains of a human head were later discovered, close to where the fisherman had last been seen.
A climber made headlines in October 2022 after he was forced to use his martial arts skills to fight off an enraged black bear that lunged at him repeatedly on a rock face on Japan’s Mount Futago.
Fearing for his life, the man lashed out at the snarling beast, using his fists and feet to strike it until it gave up and ran away.
He said he used his karate and mixed martial arts training as he had to defend himself, claiming that this was likely to have saved his life.
The unnamed climber believes the mother bear was defending her cub and that he had invaded her territory.
Japanese authorities have urged people to remain vigilant in light of the growing bear attacks, which have been on the rise year-on-year.
A record 219 incidents, including six deaths, occurred in 2023, public broadcaster NHK reported.
Japan’s bear population is also on the rise, with an estimate last year putting the number of black bears at 44,000 – compared with 15,000 estimated in 2012, The Guardian reported.
That figure does not include Hokkaido, which is thought to be home to about 12,000 Ussuri brown bears.
Conservationists have called for more to be done to improve natural habitats for bears. They have also heavily criticized bear shootings.
This article by Natasha Anderson was first published by The Daily Mail on 21 February 2025.
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