Italian Association for Wilderness (AIW)
BOAR PROBLEM: REALACCI WAKEN UP!
Not wanting to operate and looking for all the loopholes to procrastinate, here is that just to keep things going, one of the politicians and animal rights and anti-hunt leaders, has proposed an extraordinary Commissioner for the problem of the wild boar. Thus the problem will not be solved but in the meantime a new chair will be created to occupy politically! We are really Italian!
The beautiful thought is by the President of the Chamber's Environment Commission, Ermete Realacci, former leader and / or supporter of a referendum campaign against hunting.
Dear Realacci, an extraordinary Commissioner is appointed when a problem has not been resolved for years, despite having tried them all; for example, it would serve to save the Marsican Bear (in vain proposed by the writing Association and by the former President of the Abruzzo National Park), but certainly not for the wild boar, since it would be enough to liberalize animal hunting as much as possible, allowing it even inside the Parks and Oases at least for a period of one or two years, and the problem would be solved. But it is too easy, so surely we will study all those useless methods that have never solved anything, and to contain wild boars and to contain other animal species!
Therefore, first put stakes, establish rules, do studies, create bureaucracy, and then: voilà a nice extraordinary Commissioner! So that the public opinion that is suffering damage is calmed and ... everything remains as before!
They have discovered that there are more than a million wild boars now: until yesterday they did everything to avoid decisive measures, with electric fences and contraceptive methods, captures to then kill (hypocritically!) The animals in slaughterhouses. To the hunting solver, on the other hand, a difficult life: with laws, snares, limitations of hunting areas, registration in various registers or lists with lots of taxes to pay, hunting methods to change, blocking of hunting calendars, etc. Now they discover the emergency, and instead of solving it, they want to continue to do it in a "serious and scientific" way: that is, read putting a spoke in the wheel to anyone who wants to solve the problem with practical sense. Realacci gives examples of what has been done so far in some Parks, that is very little, because the methods are so expensive, cumbersome and slow, that while they catch a wild boar, the population grows by two: they have created a business, a job!
As usual, we always think of taking public opinion for a ride, of solving problems with proclamations or by changing the name of things!
Nothing will ever change in this phase as long as these people (always the same!) Are in charge of the bodies that are supposed to solve the problems. Surely a way will be found to apply for European subsidies to proceed in the meantime with the umpteenth, useless feasibility studies (but some friends will certainly be in charge of it: then they will come and maybe say that Europe is asking us!).
And then, Realacci tells us, here is the solution: the search for "an antagonistic species" (read the Wolf, which in turn is already a problem of its own but which, as for the wild boar, refuses to recognize how such: and when it will, maybe they will propose another commissioner!). And the rifle isn't it? I would like to tell him, as has been done for years in other parts in the face of similar problems? Of course, the question is that elsewhere they want to solve the problem, not just ride!
Murialdo, 14 September 2015 Frank Zunino
Secretary General of the Italian Wilderness Association