Greater realism
Confagricoltura has written to the Piedmont Region, urging it to actively implement the EU's downgrading of the species and, if possible, to implement controlled selection practices. "A more realistic approach to managing wolf populations is needed before their population growth spirals out of control, as has already happened with wild boars. The situation must be rebalanced and brought back to acceptable levels. The European Union recently downgraded the wolf from a strictly protected species to a protected species, effectively opening the way for greater flexibility in its management. This allows for more concrete responses to agricultural businesses, but this decision must also be implemented in our country as soon as possible." Enrico Allasia, president of Confagricoltura Cuneo and Piedmont, has written a letter urging the Region to actively participate in the relevant institutional bodies, including in collaboration with other regions, to achieve the species' downgrading as quickly as possible and to adopt more flexible regulations and truly effective defense mechanisms to contain this predator, which causes significant damage, especially to farmers.
What each attack means
The agricultural organization thus once again takes up the concerns of local farmers, who are seeing an increase in wolf attacks on herds and flocks, not only in mountain pastures but also in the plains, with the predator appearing just a few hundred meters from stables, sometimes even inside fences. Each attack means the loss of several animals, often young, with immediate economic damage that is difficult to recover. But indirect repercussions are also having an impact, Confagricoltura notes: "Frightened animals become stressed, spontaneous abortions occur, mares that lose their calves develop mastitis due to the lack of milking, and reductions in milk production are also noted, while farmers and their workers are burdened by the conditions in which they operate, including potentially life-threatening ones. All of this undermines the economic sustainability of companies already strained by rising costs and ever-decreasing profit margins," President Allasia continues in the letter.
Prevention systems
In the mountains, herding animals to mountain pastures is becoming an increasingly risky practice that, without targeted and effective interventions, could be abandoned within a few years. In these areas, nocturnal attacks are quite frequent, as prevention systems are circumvented: fencing off pastures, where possible, isn't enough, as wolves can leap fences over two meters high or dig beneath them. Even using guard dogs isn't always feasible, and wolves aren't afraid of sound deterrents or humans. "As a result of this situation, a growing sense of distrust is developing among farmers about continuing their activities, which they feel increasingly threatened every day," Allasia concludes. "While we wait to take advantage of the reduced restrictions imposed by the EU with a comprehensive plan of adequate measures to address this critical situation, we ask, if possible, with appropriate and precise justification, that controlled selection actions be initiated that can alleviate the pressure of these wild animals in the most affected areas of Piedmont." (Source: Confagricoltura Piemonte)
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