The Sardinian Hunting Calendar for the 2012-2013 hunting season has been approved but environmentalists are already protesting and the Sardinian WWF announces an appeal to the Tar.
Cagliari, 28.06.2012 - Yesterday morning, 27 June 2012, the Regional Fauna Committee, chaired by the Regional Councilor for the Defense of the Environment, Giorgio Oppi, approved the 2012-2013 Hunting Calendar of Sardinia amid controversy and protests by animal rights activists , the Sardinian WWF announces an appeal to the TAR.
Among the novelties of the new document we certainly find the restoration of the entire hunting days that can start from 4 October for the partridge and the turtle dove even if for the latter species there are also two pre-opening days on 2 and 6 September; boar can be hunted from 1 November also on Thursdays instead of only on Sundays; the hunting period is extended to some migratory species until 10 February.
In particular, the actual periods of the huntable species contained within the new Hunting Calendar are:
- Tortora, on 2 and 6 September 2012 at the post office and without the use of the dog for the whole day;
- Sardinian partridge and Sardinian hare, on 4, 7, 11, 14 October 2012, even in wandering form and with the use of the dog all day;
- wild rabbit from 4th October to 30th December 2012;
- blackbird, lark, dove and quail from 4 October to 30 December 2012;
- woodcock from 4 October 2012 to 20 January 2013;
- the remaining migratory birds from 4 October 2012 to 31 January 2013;
- wild boar from 4 November 2012 to 31 January 2013, on Sundays, Thursdays and midweek holidays.
In consideration of the fact that the closing dates for some species of migratory birdlife exceed the dates established in the “Key Concepts” document, it is necessary to obtain the prior opinion of ISPRA.
Furthermore, another novelty among the prescriptions approved by the Committee, without prejudice to the validity of the regional authorization already in possession, the hunters must collect the new hunting card with annual validity from the Municipality of residence.
Satisfied with the new Hunting Calendar, the regional councilors Ignazio Artizzu and Matteo Sanna commented, "It is a recognition of some fundamental requests of Sardinian hunters, which must be acknowledged to our friend Giorgio Oppi who has shown himself sensitive to the demands of the world hunting while maintaining proper rigor in the discipline of sampling ".
In conclusion, Artizzu and Sanna explain, "Now we hope for the rapid approval of the new law on hunting in Sardinia: for our part, we will aim for the use of hunting in derogation for the month of February".
However, the environmentalists protest immediately about the new Hunting Calendar launched yesterday by the Regional Fauna Committee and with its own note the WWF Sardinia announces an appeal to the TAR to put an end to "yet another robbery of Sardinian fauna" with the approval of this Calendar that it would be among the "most permissive of recent years".
The president of WWF Sardinia, Antonello Secci commented on the approval of the new hunting document criticizing, “It is truly shameful what happened today. Taking advantage of their preponderant number in the Committee, the exponents of the hunting world have greedily forced their hand to take the two full days of pre-opening to the turtle dove in early September. We all know that in September the contingents of wild turtledove have now flown away and hunting inevitably shifts to other species, in particular the sedentary species such as hare and partridge, taking advantage of the poor control of the supervisory bodies employed in the fire service ".
According to Secci, with this new calendar, "not one, but a hundred steps backwards compared to the hunting calendars of recent years have been made, thanks also to the deliberative power of this Committee, the only case in Italy, since in the other Italian regions it has only advisory power ".