To protect grazing animals
Özdemir also wants to make it easier to shoot down wolves
09/04/2023, 8:35 p.m
listen to the article
This audio version was artificially generated. More Info | send feedback
With a growing wolf population, there are more and more frequent encounters between predators and grazing animals, which often end in blood. After Environment Minister Lemke, Agriculture Minister Özdemir is now also in favor of killing the wolves more quickly.
Federal Agriculture Minister Cem Özdemir also wants to ensure that wolves can be killed more quickly when grazing animals are in danger. “In the future, it must be easier to remove individual wolves and whole packs that overcome herd protection measures and kill animals,” said the Green politician.
So far, such launches have unfortunately failed due to inconsistent interpretations of the legal requirements. That should be turned off, clarity is needed, according to Özdemir. He supports Environment Minister Steffi Lemke from the Greens in an initiative to work with the federal states for a simplified application of the applicable rules.
“I want sheep, goats and cattle to be able to continue to stand as safely as possible on our pastures,” said the Minister of Agriculture. Wolves are causing increasing problems for animal keepers in some regions. “We cannot leave the farmers alone with this, they deserve our solidarity and our support,” said Özdemir.
“Tragedy for every grazer”
Steffi Lemke intends to present concrete proposals at the end of September. According to her ministry, however, it is already possible to kill wolves that have repeatedly overcome reasonable protective measures for herds such as fences. The approval and the way there are too bureaucratic, said a spokesman. That should now be changed. “When dozens of sheep are killed and lie dead on the pasture, it is a tragedy for every grazer and a great burden for those affected. They therefore need more support and security,” emphasized Lemke.
The FDP had previously spoken out in the traffic light coalition in favor of far-reaching regulations to protect grazing animals from wolves. In the coalition agreement, the SPD, the Greens and the FDP agreed to organize the coexistence of grazing animals, humans and wolves so well “that as few conflicts as possible occur despite the increasing wolf population”. Revised monitoring standards are intended to realistically depict the number of wolves and enable the federal states to carry out regionally differentiated stock management.