Debate: Protection of livestock farming and large carnivores in Europe
Date: WEDNESDAY, 23 NOVEMBER 2022
Speaker: Janez Lenarčič
Language: EN

I would like, first of all, to try and address some of the concerns that have been voiced by some of you.  On the costs of co-existence measures, I would like to give you some perspective about the costs. In the framework of the prioritised action frameworks, the Member States have estimated that the total needs for compensation, prevention and mitigation measures in relation to all protected species would amount to around EUR 180 million per year. At the same time, the common agricultural policy has specifically earmarked for biodiversity EUR 10.7 billion per year. This means that the potential maximum contribution from the common agricultural policy for wolf protection would then be a very, very small amount in comparison to the total biodiversity spending claimed from the common agricultural policy.  On the effectiveness of livestock protection measures, these have been proven effective. They have been proven to prevent, or at least significantly reduce, predation risks – of course when properly implemented and tailored to the specific situation and to the specific context in which they’re applied.  Let me share with you just one of many examples of the prevention measures that were implemented under the Life Wolfalps project, which is a project implemented in the Italian Alps. This project led to a reduction of attacks of about 96%. The measures concern both cattle and sheep and were targeted to the different livestock breeders. They included electric fences, night—time enclosures, acoustic devices, livestock guarding dogs and the like. There are also some other examples with similar, or even higher, successful reduction, going up to 100%. On the level of protection of wolves, it is true that the wolf is no longer at risk of extinction in Europe. That’s true. However, in most EU Member States, it has not yet achieved a favourable status, according to national reports. The situation of this species is still fragile and is subject to a high level of human—caused mortality from poaching, from car accidents and from authorised culling.  So we need to act very carefully. We believe that a strict protection status is still necessary in order to be able to achieve and to maintain a favourable conservation status, while I would like to recall that the removal of individual wolves is already permitted under certain conditions.  On the impact of wolves on livestock farming in Europe, it is known that wolves prey primarily on wild animals like red deer, roe deer, wild boar and chamois, and so on. It is also true, of course, that if livestock is not properly protected in wolf areas, the risk of predation can become significant at local level. But according to the study carried out for the European Parliament back in 2018, wolf predation numbers at EU level concern around 20 000 sheep per year. This is a big figure which can be drastically reduced with proper protection measures. But this figure, 20 000, represents 0.06% of the sheep numbers in the concerned countries – 0.06%.  So I do not believe that the crisis of sheep farming or land abandonment are caused by large carnivores, also because this actually occurs in many areas where there is no presence of such carnivores, but where we also have issues of land abandonment and crisis in sheep farming.  Finally, on the impact of large carnivores on public safety, aggressiveness of large carnivores towards humans is considered to be an extremely rare phenomenon. For instance, we know that fatal wolf attacks on humans have been reported in historical times, but none, not one, has been recorded in the 21st century in Europe. Not a single one – even though there have been thousands of documented close encounters between wolves and humans.  Bear attacks are a different matter. They are documented in some cases in Northern Europe and the Southeast Balkans, but they also occur under very specific circumstances, often as a defensive mechanism such as the protection of offspring. But let me just put the whole of this issue in the wider context. It is useful to recall that by far most of the actual risks of animal attacks on humans actually come from domestic animals, primarily dogs.  Honourable Members, It’s time to conclude from my side. Nowadays there is a great deal of knowledge and experience on the different conflicts with wildlife species, including large carnivores, and also on the possible ways to address them. I can assure you that we, the European Commission, are actively monitoring the issue at various levels with a view to supporting targeted and suitable solutions to achieve the objectives which we believe we share.  The Commission is committed to protect Europe’s biodiversity, its habitats and species. That said, it is the Member States who are responsible for wildlife management and for the implementation of EU nature legislation. The Commission will, of course, contribute to the research, dissemination, promotion and support of good practices aiming at preventing and reducing possible conflicts caused by wildlife protected species.