Paper or digital?
“The traditional paper hunting card must be kept in place Umbria, as an alternative option offered to hunters, even if we continue with the introduction of forms of digital counting of killed game". The regional councilor of the League Manuela Puletti announces a question, also signed by colleagues Marco Castellari and Valerio Mancini (Lega), in which the competent Councilor is asked "whether it is his intention to maintain, with the methods he deems most appropriate and adequate, in compliance with national and community regulations, the paper form of the card for the practice of hunting in Umbria".
A decreasing total
“A practice – recalls Puletti – which boasts a long tradition in our region, traditionally involving numerous enthusiasts. And yet it also sees in Umbria, as in the rest of Italy, a decrease in the number of hunters who renew their licenses, due to the continuous regulations that hinder their activity carried out precisely according to those principles linked to rural culture. A phenomenon which in Umbria has translated into a reduction of over 40% in the number of those who actively practice hunting, which however, based on data from the last hunting season, still reaches the number of 25.850, many of whom however over 60 years of age".
Data collection
“While I understand the desire to resort to digitalisation to have a timely collection of data – highlights Puletti – the exclusive use of these forms would end up discouraging many Umbrian hunters, who are often very old and not inclined to use such electronic systems, as demonstrated in the case of the turtle dove counting app used in the pre-openings of the last two hunting seasons. A system that has shown various critical issues and difficulties in practical application in some areas. However, it is not exhaustive regarding the monitoring of wildlife, which must rather take place through the observation of the responsible bodies. Finally, we highlight how the use of cell phones during hunting could represent an element of distraction and therefore danger."
No to Umbria as a trailblazer
“For all these reasons – concludes Puletti – we ask that even if the Umbria Region intends to continue with the experiments for the gradual introduction of the digital card, this does not lead to the suppression of the traditional paper card. Moreover, no Italian region has abandoned the traditional hunting card in paper form. We would not like Umbria to lead the way” (source: Regional Council of Umbria).