Just two weeks after the Bavarian Wolf Ordinance came into force, Prime Minister Markus Söder brought up an amendment. “Should there be a lawsuit against it, we will take a close look at the judgments and, if in doubt, then bring appropriately adapted regulations on the way,” said the CSU leader on Monday after a party executive meeting in Munich.
The Bavarian Wolf Ordinance, which has been in force since May 1st, is very controversial. According to a Bundestag report, it is probably not compatible with the applicable federal and EU law. Specifically, the report complains that the ordinance allows the removal of a wolf after the first tear of a grazing animal. According to the report, this is “fundamentally not compatible” with the species protection requirements in the European Union.
The report also raised legal doubts with regard to the Federal Nature Conservation Act. It also doubts that wolves could be killed, although the damage caused to grazing animals was not or cannot be clearly attributed to them: To forgo the attempt at concrete assignment from the outset should “contradict the Federal Nature Conservation Act and thus higher-ranking law”.
In Bavaria, too, there are massive doubts about the legality of the wolf ordinance. The Bund Naturschutz (BN) decided a few days ago to want to file a lawsuit against the new regulation. The wolf is still strictly protected under European and German law.
The Bavarian state government, on the other hand, has repeatedly questioned the protection status because, in their opinion, there are already too many wolves in Germany and also in Bavaria. She also emphasized that without more restrictive action against wolves, pastoralism would be in serious danger, since special protective measures such as fences in the Alps, for example, could not be implemented.