There are between 7,500 and 8,100 brown bears in Romania, according to a recent study, and a constant increase in the bear population has been recorded in the country, Minister of the Environment, Waters and Forestry Barna Tanczos said on Wednesday.
According to the minister, this development "generates a constant increase in human-bear interactions, conflicts and a constant increase in the number and value of damage incurred."
He said that the study puts the brown bear population in Romania at a minimum of 7,536 and a maximum of 8,093.
"It is very clear that, except for the COVID-19 pandemic -- when activities were much more reduced from all points of view -- a constant increase in the number of incidents and the number of injured and the number of dead people following bear attacks has been unfortunately visible," Tanczos told a news conference for the implementation of a national action plan for the conservation of the brown bear population.
He added that based on this study he prepared a new ministerial order with active measures to ensure, on the one hand, maintaining a favourable conservation status, and on the other hand, implementing the legal provisions.
"The Ministry of the Environment has until May 15 to issue a ministerial order with prevention quotas by which it reduces the number of conflicts and by which it reduces the instances and amounts of damage. Last year, we issued a ministerial order for 140 bears. That order of the minister was implemented by specialist technical staff of hunting associations. This year we are preparing a new ministerial order that we want to issue and sign by May 15, as the law requires," said Tanczos.
According to him, 444 brown bears were harvested in Romania from 2016 to 2022.
At the same time, the density of the bear population emerging from the study will be taken into account.
In those areas where density is low, the influence of this factor on the calculation formula will be very small. There, the number of extractions, the number of prevention quotas or the prevention quotas will be much lower.
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