Romania\u2019s parliament has approved the culling of almost 500 bears this year in an effort to control the \u201coverpopulation\u201d of the protected species after a deadly attack on a hiker sparked nationwide outcry.<\/p>\n
The country is home to 8,000 brown bears, according to the environment ministry, Europe\u2019s largest brown bear population outside Russia.<\/p>\n
Bears have killed 26 people and severely injured 274 others over the past 20 years in Romania, the ministry said this year.<\/p>\n
After a young hiker was mauled to death on a popular trail in Romania\u2019s Carpathian mountains last week, the prime minister, Marcel Ciolacu, summoned lawmakers back from their summer recess to attend an emergency session of parliament.<\/p>\n
As well as adopting legislation on Monday to control the brown bear population, the parliament held a moment of silence in the 19-year-old hiker\u2019s memory.<\/p>\n
The new law authorises the culling of 481 bears in 2024, more than twice last year\u2019s total of 220. Lawmakers argued that the bears\u2019 overpopulation had led to an increase in attacks, while admitting that the law would not prevent attacks in the future.<\/p>\n
Environmental groups denounced the measure. \u201cThe law solves absolutely nothing,\u201d said Calin Ardelean, a World Wildlife Fund biologist, arguing that the focus should be shifted towards \u201cprevention and intervention\u201d as well as \u201cproblem bears\u201d.<\/p>\n
According to WWF Romania, culls will not remedy the problem unless measures are put in place to keep bears away from communities, such as better waste management or preventing people from feeding animals.<\/p>\n
In 2023 about 7,500 emergency calls to signal bear sightings were recorded, more than double the number of the previous year, according to data presented last week by Romanian authorities.<\/p>\n