(MTI) Cluj-Napoca, February 11, 2022 - The Romanian Ministry of Environment, Water and Forestry would introduce a shooting quota to prevent bear danger.

The draft decree on this was published on the Ministry's website. The draft regulation proposes the shooting of 220 brown bears. Under the 80 individual intervention quotas, individuals who pose a direct threat to human life or public safety could be shot. Such bears could be shot with the approval of the environmental authority. In addition, however, the ministry would allow the shooting of 140 individuals to prevent bear danger. It would allow the depletion of bear populations in the vicinity of the settlements where most reports of bear damage and bear attacks have been received in recent years. The prevention quota is a novelty in game management in Romania after the Ciolos government banned bear hunting for population control in 2016. Previously, the Ministry allowed the shooting of 400-450 bears a year. "The lives of those living in areas inhabited or favored by bears are becoming increasingly difficult, so we need to find immediate solutions," said Barna Tánczos, Minister of the Environment. The head of the ministry added that based on the number and value of the damage in the last two years and the map of the attacks on people, a list has been compiled to allow the shooting of 1-3 bears per settlement. Barna Tánczos also noted that a peer-reviewed study of bear conflicts over the past two years has shown that relocating individuals with deviant feeding habits does not eliminate the risk of bears in the long run. Individuals visiting the settlements either return after relocation or cause the same problems in their new habitat. The press department of the ministry told MTI that the quotas are for 2022 and are valid until they are exhausted. Statistics published on the ministry's website show that there have been 47 bear attacks in Romania in the last two years. In addition, the damage caused by big game was reported in 2974 cases, and the total value of bear damage over two years was 6.8 million lei (half a billion forints). The statistics show that bears cause the most problems in Szeklerland. Attacks against 14 people were recorded in Harghita County, and more than 40 percent of the damage was reported in Harghita and Mureş County. However, the damage is also significant in Covasna, Brasov and Sibiu counties, and in the statistics of attacks on people, Prahova County is in second place with five cases. The prevention quota allocated to counties and settlements is also in line with the statistics. If the decree is issued by the ministry in its current form, local hunting companies can shoot 35 bears in Harghita County, 25 in Mureş County, 13 in Covasna County and 11 in Brasov.