Worryingly increasing reports
Cia-Agricoltori Italiani Centro Lombardia, following the constant increase in reports, declares itself strongly concerned about the growing increase in presence of wolves in the Lodi area, with the consequent danger not only for livestock, but also and above all for human beings. In past years the proliferation of the wolf concerned areas close to the mountains, therefore inaccessible and less anthropized territories, but today sightings are increasingly increasing in areas, including residential ones, in flat territories, with the increasingly high risk of attacks on people.
What do camera traps “tell”?
News of attacks on livestock are commonplace, but only a few days ago a farmer from Somaglia (Lodi) reported, complete with images of camera traps positioned outside his home, that he had received a "visit" in front of the home to a pack of ten wolves. The December proposal of the EU Commission, i.e. the passage of the status of the wolf from "strictly protected" to "protected", goes in the right direction both to safeguard the species and to protect farmers and livestock companies, especially in inland and rural areas of the country. However, exemptions are necessary to be able to intervene as soon as possible to protect farms, but above all citizens.
A historical period of great difficulty
In fact, it is not a question of protecting livestock and the related economic loss of farmers, who are already experiencing a historical period of great difficulty, now the matter is more serious. This summer no farmer will want to irrigate the land at night, rather than enter the corn even during daylight hours, and the fear of encountering a wolf or, worse, a hungry pack, is spreading at the same speed with which these predators are expanding their hunting areas. Even for citizens of countries near agricultural land and livestock, the situation is becoming increasingly dangerous: people have to worry about their own safety every time they leave their homes, just as they have to worry about the most defenseless family members, children and the elderly, and even your pets.
The need for new incentives
Cia Centro Lombardia therefore appeals to local administrators, but also to the highest levels of national politics, to encourage the establishment of exemptions in order to intervene in defense of people and livestock. The tools in the hands of farmers are no longer sufficient, further incentives are needed for the creation of networks and fences, as well as a more effective containment plan, rather than targeted culling. The fear is that sooner or later fear will take over and push people to intervene autonomously, with the risk of compromising the ecosystem balance or, even worse, endangering their own lives and those of others to contain the phenomenon of increase in wolves and their attacks (source: CIA).