"Politicians must be guided by facts, not scaremongering" demand German Animal Welfare Federation and Humane Society International/Europe at the UMK
On the occasion of the Conference of Environment Ministers (UMK), which is currently meeting in Münster, the German Animal Welfare Federation and Humane Society International/Europe (HSI) refer to the latest results of a survey by Eurogroup for Animals, which looks at the attitudes of people in rural areas towards large carnivores. According to the survey, people in rural areas in Germany not only support the protection of nature in general, but also the protection of wolves in particular. In addition to Germany, the survey involved 10,000 inhabitants of rural regions from nine other EU countries and shows that an overwhelming majority at EU level also believe that large carnivores such as wolves have a fundamental right to exist and should remain strictly protected.
"The results of the survey make it clear that, in the opinion of the population in rural areas, the key to possible coexistence is not the killing of wolves, but rather herd protection measures. Political decision-makers are therefore ill-advised to be led by the scaremongering of the farmers' or hunting associations," comments James Brückner, Head of the Wildlife Department at the German Animal Welfare Federation.
"The loudest voices in favor of lifting the protection status for wolves come from farming and hunting associations, who have been happy to invoke the interests of the rural population. However, the results of the survey show that many EU citizens living in rural areas want to maintain legal protection for wolves and support peaceful coexistence. It is important that these voices are also heard in Germany and the EU," says Dr. Jo Swabe, Senior Director Public Affairs at HSI/Europe.
WOLF MANAGEMENT: FOCUS MUST BE ON PREVENTION
Two out of three respondents in Germany only see the killing of individual wolves as an option if herd protection measures have been implemented and have remained ineffective. In contrast, only one in ten people disagree with this approach. The associations see this as a strong statement against the constant demands for wolf-free zones and hunting quotas for wolves in Germany. A proposal by Federal Environment Minister Steffi Lemke discussed today at the UMK provides for wolves that overcome herd protection measures to be killed more quickly in future. As a result of massive lobbying by agricultural and hunting associations, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also announced at the beginning of September that the EU Commission would review the protection status of wolves by the end of the year. The German Animal Welfare Federation and HSI/Europe are calling on political decision-makers in Germany and the EU to oppose measures that jeopardize the protected status of wolves and other large carnivores. A lowering of the protection status and the associated increased possibility of intervention in the wolf population are neither covered by scientific facts nor expedient in terms of improving the protection of grazing animals. As wolves prey on unprotected grazing animals in the vast majority of cases, the focus should be more on preventing and compensating for wolf attacks.
BACKGROUND TO THE SURVEY:
The survey "UNDERSTANDING RURAL PERSPECTIVES - A survey on attitudes towards large carnivores in rural communities" published today was commissioned by Eurogroup for Animals as the European animal welfare umbrella organization and other organizations, including the German Animal Welfare Federation and Humane Society International/Europe, and conducted by market research company Savanta. 10,000 inhabitants of rural areas from ten EU countries took part in the surveys in November 2023: Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Poland, Denmark, Sweden and Romania.
The results for Germany show that a large proportion of the rural population (78%) believe that protecting the environment for future generations is important. As many as 80% consider nature and species conservation to be important or very important overall. Many rural dwellers support the protection of wolves and other large carnivores: 70 % state that they should continue to be strictly protected and over two thirds (67 %) believe that wolves and other large carnivores have a fundamental right to exist.
The survey also shows that the implementation of livestock protection measures is seen as a key instrument to protect grazing animals from wolves (75 %). More than two thirds (68%) are of the opinion that the public sector should finance such measures.
