Greenpeace Slovakia and Poland launch a call against bear culling, which EU law does not permit

Bratislava – The Slovak and Polish branches of Greenpeace are launching a petition for an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) and European Commissioner for the Environment Jessika Roswall regarding the planned culling of 350 bears. According to them, the planned culling, approved by the government, could have a negative impact on the entire Carpathian region and may be in violation of European legislation. They consider the plan to be absolutely reckless and another alarming example of the failure of nature conservation, TASR reports.

“Bears do not recognize borders; they move freely across countries. Slovakia’s new plan will have consequences far beyond its territory and directly threatens bear populations in neighboring countries, such as Poland. Extensive culling of bears in Slovakia could destroy decades of work on their protection in the Carpathians and in Europe,” points out Robert Cyglicki, campaign director for biodiversity.

The organization criticizes that the Slovak government has decided to ignore proven measures to prevent conflicts between bears and humans, while instead of prioritizing scientifically based solutions, it announces mass culling. Although the organization acknowledges the increased number of reports of bear encounters and attacks in Slovakia and their presence near human settlements, it is convinced that people’s safety should be ensured through scientifically based strategies, not politically motivated short-term solutions.

The organization also reminds that the brown bear plays a key role in the Carpathian ecosystem. It helps maintain the balance and health of natural habitats by regulating prey populations and contributing to plant regeneration. All brown bear populations in the EU, including those in Slovakia, are strictly protected under the EU Habitats Directive. The European Commission warned last August that EU member states cannot carry out preventive culling of brown bears.

At the beginning of April, the government declared a state of emergency in several districts due to the presence of bears. It also approved an extraordinary intervention in the brown bear population of 350 individuals based on a report from the State Nature Conservation of Slovakia. The government’s decision is also criticized by the civic initiative We Are the Forest and organizations Aevis, WWF Slovakia, and Via Iuris. They consider this step to be unsystematic, which does not solve the situation but may worsen it. (April 9)