On 24 November, the European Parliament voted on a joint resolution regarding livestock farming and the protection of large carnivores
in Europe.
The most significant demand from Parliament is a renewed call to implement Article 19 of the Habitats Directive. A fully and correctly implemented directive includes a procedure for amending the directive's annexes, ensuring that species are listed in accordance with scientific and technical progress. It should be noted that moving large carnivore populations from one annex (e.g., strict protection) to another (e.g., protection with management) does not change the legal obligation of member states to ensure a favourable conservation status.
This is a crucial request for those who work and live in rural areas (including stakeholders), such as hunters, as the strict protection status of certain large carnivores leads to a legal and administrative impasse in member states. The core of the problem lies in the overly narrow interpretation of EU legislation by certain stakeholders and the persistent legal challenges brought at the national level by non-governmental organisations that focus on strict protection.
The populations of many large carnivores, particularly European wolves, continue to grow. According to the latest data on the conservation status of wolves in Europe, approximately 19,000 individuals have been recorded in European Union countries, and the area inhabited by wolves has increased by more than 25% in the last decade alone. The reality of the situation is not adequately reflected in the EU reporting procedure, under which populations are reported at a biogeographical level, which is not suitable for highly mobile species such as wolves and lynx.
The ranges of large carnivore populations can extend to thousands of square kilometres, inevitably crossing national or other administrative borders. Protection, monitoring and management measures, as well as assessments of conservation status, should be conducted at a biologically appropriate and cross-border level. This is also confirmed by the latest IUCN assessment of the conservation status of the wolf in Europe.