Slovakia’s decision to reintroduce wolf hunting has outraged Czechia, who fear it could endanger the wolf population of the Beskid Mountains, which stretches from Czechia to Slovakia, as well as violate EU rules.
Wolves are still protected in Czechia and are also covered by the EU’s Habitats Directive. Czechia included them on its national list of protected species under the directive, which is not the case in Slovakia, meaning any wolves straying across the border are at risk of being killed.
The Czech Environment Ministry urged Slovakia to harmonise wolf protection along their shared border, mirroring measures in place with Poland and Hungary, a spokesperson told Euractiv Czechia.
Euractiv Slovakia asked the Slovak ministry for its position on the Czech letter but did not receive a reply.
Czech and Slovak environmental organisations, led by Hnutí DUHA, have lodged a formal complaint with the European Commission, citing possible breaches of EU nature protection laws.
WWF Slovakia expert Milan Janák pointed to suspicions that the EU’s Habitats Directive had been violated. He said the Slovak authorities reintroduced hunting and the quota without assessing the impact on grey wolf populations in areas of European importance, where the species is protected.
This view is confirmed by Slavomír Finďo from the State Nature Conservation Agency of Slovakia. He pointed out that there are 84 sites of European importance in Slovakia where the wolf is a protected species. He added that the areas were designated before 2005, when knowledge of wolf migration was limited, noting that wolves need territories spanning tens of thousands of hectares to survive.
Encouraging hunters to action
Following the downgrading of wolves’ protection status from “strictly protected” to “protected” at the international level in November 2024, the Slovak Environment Ministry announced a quota of 74 wolves to be killed in the 2025 hunting season.
The Slovak Agriculture Ministry has already reported 23 killings this winter.
However, the State Secretary of the Slovak Environment Ministry, Filip Kuffa, has stated that permission to hunt wolves is subject to strict conditions. For example, areas of European significance and national parks are excluded from quota-based hunting.
However, he also pointed out that wolves cause significant damage to livestock in Slovakia and across the EU and urged hunters to take action.
Opposition politicians from Progressive Slovakia (RE) and Demokrati (EPP) have questioned the legality of the hunts, citing ambiguous legislation and arguing that inadequate data and maps could lead to wolves being hunted in areas where it is prohibited.
The legislation in question is the EU Habitats Directive, which requires an appropriate assessment of any project or plan that could threaten the viability of populations of protected species.
For example, in the same way that cross-border sections of motorways are assessed to prevent animal fragmentation or increased collisions between protected animal species and traffic, plans that aim solely at the direct killing of animals that are priority protected species of the EU must also be carefully assessed.
Ursia also argued that while the Slovak Interior Ministry recognises the timber wolf as a priority species under the Habitats Directive, the change in Slovak legislation that came into force in January ignores this commitment and instead extends the hunting season from 1 September, when wolf packs are most vulnerable due to the raising of their pups.
“The ministry, instead of focusing on nature protection, is pushing the unilateral interests of hunters and jeopardising the balance of our ecosystems,” warned members of the Ursia association.
Several other conservation organisations, including Aevis, WWF Slovakia and Greenpeace Slovakia, have also called on the Environment Ministry to revoke the regulation allowing wolf hunting and to maintain year-round protection instead.
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Publish date : 2025-01-23 21:07:00
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The post Czechia growls at Slovakia in wolf hunting row first appeared on Love Europe.
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Author : love-europe
Publish date : 2025-01-26 22:33:32
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