The EU calls for the protection status of gray wolves and bears to be weakened. The background to this is the lawsuits from farmers whose livestock are being torn by the predators. However, Steffi Lemke and eleven of her EU colleagues have rejected the request.
German Environment Minister Steffi Lemke (Greens) and eleven of her EU colleagues have rejected the European Parliament’s calls for less protection for gray wolves. In a letter to the European Commission published on Wednesday, they made it clear that existing exemptions, for example for the shooting of animals, should not be relaxed.
Earlier in November, the EU Parliament had asked the EU Commission to weaken the protection status of wolves and bears. The background to this was complaints from farmers that the predators were killing livestock such as sheep.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (CDU) is also personally affected. A gray wolf tore her 30-year-old pony Dolly last September. The competent authorities in Lower Saxony have received an application for a permit to shoot the wolf. According to earlier reports, he is said to have killed at least 13 animals, mainly sheep.
