Romania plans to slaughter almost 500 bears following the death of a hiker

Romania Bear

On Monday, Romania's parliament approved the culling of nearly 500 bears this year to address the "overpopulation" of the protected species, following a fatal hiker attack that caused widespread public outcry.

Romania boasts the largest brown bear population in Europe outside of Russia, with approximately 8,000 bears, according to the environment ministry.

Over the past 20 years, bears have killed 26 people and severely injured 274 others in Romania, the ministry reported earlier this year.

The recent death of a young hiker on a popular trail in Romania's Carpathian Mountains prompted Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu to call lawmakers back from their summer recess for an emergency parliamentary session.

During the session, parliament passed legislation to manage the brown bear population and observed a moment of silence for the 19-year-old hiker.

The newly adopted law authorizes the culling of 481 bears in 2024, more than double the previous year's total of 220.

Lawmakers argued that the "overpopulation" of bears had led to an increase in attacks, though they admitted that the new law would not entirely prevent future incidents.

Environmental groups have criticized the measure. World Wildlife Fund biologist Calin Ardelean told AFP that the law "solves absolutely nothing," suggesting that efforts should focus on "prevention and intervention" and addressing so-called "problem bears."

According to WWF Romania, culling alone won't resolve the issue unless measures are implemented to keep bears away from communities, such as improving waste management and preventing people from feeding the animals.

In 2023, Romanian authorities recorded around 7,500 emergency calls reporting bear sightings, more than double the previous year's figure.