(2004/C 84 E/0175)

WRITTEN QUESTION P-4034/03

by Kyösti Virrankoski (ELDR) to the Commission

(5 January 2004)

Subject:   Protecting people and livestock against wolves and bears

Wolves and bears are strictly protected in the EU. However, in some areas of Finland large numbers of these wild animals exist, and they pose a real danger to people, especially children. Livestock/domestic animals are also in danger, as there is no satisfactory method of keeping wild animals away.

Particularly dangerous are wild animals which have become accustomed to being near people. In the Northern Karelia province of Finland, for example, there are herds of wolves whose behaviour has changed. They are not afraid of people but on the contrary seek out prey in the immediate vicinity of human settlements. This year, for instance, wolves have already mauled a dozen cattle, sheep and dogs. In some areas, children do not dare to walk to school, so either parents have to drive them or the municipality has to organise transport to and from school.

Large wild animals are exceptionally numerous in Northern Karelia because the wildernesses in Russian Karelia, beyond Finland's eastern border, are a constant source of new animals, while on the other hand the large lakes prevent them from spreading to the west. In fact, despite this, populations of large wild animals have grown significantly throughout Finland in recent years.

Very few shooting licences are issued for wolves and bears. The issuing of hunting licences is based on average wild animal populations in Finland. No account whatsoever is taken of wild animal populations beyond the Russian border. Accordingly, the police have had to kill a wild animal in the middle of a settlement in the interests of public safety, because the appropriate authorities have not been able to issue the requisite licence.

Answer given by Mrs Wallström on behalf of the Commission

(5 February 2004)

Several large carnivores, such as the wolf, brown bear and lynx, are protected by Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (1), Annex IV(a). These species are therefore subject to the strict protection scheme that requires, among others, that their deliberate killing is prohibited. The Directive does, however, recognize that in certain situations there may exist the need for a derogation to this general rule of strict protection. These justifications, which include ‘inter alia’ public safety and preventing serious damage to livestock, are listed in Article 16 of the Directive. Member States may apply these derogations provided that there is no satisfactory alternative and the derogation is not detrimental to the maintenance of the populations of the species concerned at a favourable conservation status in their natural range.

The number of bears in Finland (830 in 2002) is, according to the authorities, stable rather than expanding. The 2003 hunting quota for bears in Finland was 90 individuals which cannot be considered a small number. The number of wolves is 130 which would still mean that its conservation status is not favourable. When defining the national conservation status of these species, Russian influence has been taken into account and the degree downgraded accordingly: bears from actual ‘Vulnerable’ (vaarantunut) to ‘Near threatened’ (silmälläpidettävä) and wolves similarly from ‘Critically endangered’ (äärimmäisen uhanalainen) to ‘Endangered’ (erittäin uhanalainen).

The Commission is aware that the Finnish authorities, in granting permits to hunt bear, are adjusting the regional quotas according to the population in the areas concerned. With respect to wolves, specific permits are granted for the destruction of individuals that have become problematic for the justifications foreseen in the Directive.

The Commission is, therefore, of the view that the Directive allows for appropriate management of the species to avoid problems of public safety and damage to agricultural interests. In discussions with the Finnish authorities, the Commission has requested that these measures should be structured in the form of a management plan which addresses the conservation management objectives for the species alongside the issue of population control and the approaches that should be taken to promote co-existence between large carnivores and human populations. It is clear that there is much experience of this in Member States. A recent conference on the specific issue of the wolf, ‘Living with the Wolf’ organized by the Commission in collaboration with the Spanish authorities and with participants from all Member States with wolf populations, was the first in a series of actions the Commission is proposing to promote such positive co-operation between Member States.

(1)  OJ L 206, 22.7.1992.