In parts of Europe, the brown bear is on the rise again. Isolated fatal encounters have occurred in Italy in recent months. A petition is now calling for the bear population in Trentino to be curbed.
In four days, 6,000 signatures were collected against the growing number of bears in Trentino, Italy. The petition was handed over to the municipality of Val di Sole in Trentino to organize a referendum on bears, local media reported.
Bears and wolves as economic damage?
The committee that called for the referendum asked residents: “Do you believe that the presence of large predators such as bears and wolves in areas such as the Sole, Peio and Rabbi valleys poses a serious threat to public safety and harms the economy and the preservation of local customs and traditions?”
In April 2023, a bear fatally injured a 26-year-old jogger in Caldes, Trentino. Trentino recently approved a bill aimed at curbing the spread of the bear population. The bill provides for the possibility of killing up to eight animals per year. Recent estimates put the number of bears in Trentino at over 100.
Shooting as a political issue
Another bear attacked and injured a French holidaymaker on July 16. After the attack, Governor Maurizio Fugatti twice signed a shooting warrant against the woman. This was suspended twice by the regional administrative court after an appeal by animal rights activists.
Source: Krone
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