Deputy Egbert van Dijk has presented a petition to the House of Representatives calling for management of the wolf. Drenthe is working together with deputy Harold Zoet (both BBB) from the province of Gelderland.
The provinces want the House of Representatives to urge the cabinet to request a reduction in the protected status of the wolf in Brussels. The petition ‘Limits to the wolf’ also calls for clear policy regarding the wolf, to establish a favorable conservation status together with neighboring countries and to quickly provide public information.
Deputy Henk Jumelet, who had the wolf in his portfolio in the previous period, also called on Minister Christianne van der Wal for Nitrogen and Nature in February last year to lower the protected status of the wolf. The ministry is also already in consultation with neighboring countries to determine the healthy conservation status. In addition, the ministry expects to provide more clarity about a national wolf information point in May.
The petition has been co-signed by the municipalities of Borger-Odoorn, Coevorden and Midden-Drenthe, as well as a number of Gelderland municipalities. Sheep farmer Bert Zinger from Hijken was also present to hand over the petition.
An infographic accompanying the petition mentions 1,085 sheep/goats, 28 cattle and 7 horses killed in Drenthe. A total of 1.6 million euros in subsidies have been provided for wolf-resistant grids in Drenthe. In 2023, 85 percent of the animals in the pack’s habitat in the Drents Friese Wold were unprotected and in 2022 that was 8 percent. The most recent figure is not yet public.
In the summer, the member states of the European Union will vote on lowering the protected status of the wolf. The Netherlands has not yet determined a position on this. The House of Representatives can influence this. That is why the ‘wolf’ deputies from Drenthe and Gelderland are in The Hague.
The vote in Brussels is expected to be on the agenda of the Environment Council on June 17. If the wolf is indeed given a less protected status, it is still protected. The expectation is that it will then be easier to intervene if a wolf attacks well-protected livestock several times.
The coalition agreement states that Drenthe wants to become a wolf-free region. Deputy Van Dijk is currently investigating whether it is possible to shoot a ‘problem wolf’ that attacks well-protected livestock several times in a short period of time. He expects this investigation to be completed before the summer.
On April 4, the standing committee on Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality will hold a round table discussion about the wolf. The House of Representatives will then be informed by organizations that deal with the wolf, scientists and legal experts. On April 17, the nature committee in the House of Representatives will consider the wolf.
This afternoon another petition about the wolf will also be presented in The Hague. This national petition ‘Keep the wolf out of the Netherlands’ has been signed almost 15,000 times. The initiator is veterinary assistant and hobby animal owner Jori van der Burg from Barneveld.
Tags: Drenthe asks support House Representatives manage wolves
