EU Platform on Coexistence between People & Large Carnivores

The EU Platform on coexistence between people and large carnivores was established in 2014 and has proved a useful way for stakeholders to exchange information on the EU level and to discuss how different member states deal with large carnivore management. This process has highlighted, that good examples of coexistence exist and can be transferred to new settings. However, it has also highlighted the variation in the situations across the different member states and how the conflicts vary for example, depending on the socio-economic activities in the areas which large carnivores are returning to and the biogeographic and natural conditions.

In many EU member states, the populations of wolf are increasing and the wolf is also further spreading in the EU with e.g. first observations in Belgium (both in Flanders and Wallonia). The Flemish Government made use of the EU Platform’s products as input to a draft wolf management plan for the region. This demonstrates the role the EU Platform on coexistence between people and large carnivores can play long before there is a coexistence problem. It also shows how essential it is to engage with those interested in and affected by large carnivores in every region where there are conflicts or the potential for future conflict.

This is why the EU Platform is following with great interest, the development of regional large carnivore platforms in different member states and exchanging information with them through joint meetings and collaborations. At our plenary meeting in May, we started discussions with the Campo Grande Platform in Spain, presenting an interesting approach to improving collaboration on a national level with different interest groups, willing to discuss together. The EU Platform was also instrumental in the establishment of a further European Commission contract, financed by the European Parliament, which aims to establish regional platforms in Romania, Italy and Spain. The EU Platform will be following the process closely and exchanging information regularly with the regional Platform members.

Jurgen Tack

Scientific Director of the European Landowners' Organization
Co-chair of the EU Platform on Coexistence between People and Large Carnivores

One of the main ongoing conflicts regarding large carnivores is the damage that large carnivores, particularly wolves, can cause to livestock. The EU Platform has a longstanding interest in the topic and has gathered together information on how such measures can be supported through EU funding and how they are implemented in the different member states.

At the Platform’s annual meeting in May this year, the members examined different approaches to supporting the prevention of livestock depredation. Member states use very different approaches with some funding only compensation measures and others putting significant resources into fencing, livestock guarding dogs, shepherding and surveillance systems. While some member states fund these measures entirely through regional or national funding (e.g. the German regions or Estonia), others such as France and many Italian regions, mainly use the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD). It is clear that whichever funding source is used, advice in implementing such measures and using them in combination to effectively prevent depredation is essential. 

The Platform plans to hold a regional workshop on the topic (see below) in the context of proposals for the new rural development regulation.

The EU Platform aims to engage with similar regional groupings which focus on conflict around large carnivore presence in different areas in the EU. Two currently running projects are of interest in this regard.

The pilot project on the establishment of regional platforms on coexistence between people and large carnivores started work in January 2018. The project aims to work together with stakeholders to discuss potential solutions for conflicts around large carnivores in the national, regional or local context. The project is managed by the Instituto di Ecologia Applicata (IEA) supported by a team including facilitators, social scientists and communicators. The aim is not to propose particular solutions but to support the parties affected in discussing the problems and potential solutions together. Platforms are currently being scoped in Romania, Italy and Spain. A second tender to establish further regional platforms is planned later this year.

A second project supported through the LIFE programme, EuroLargeCarnivores, aims to encourage coexistence through transboundary cooperation and knowledge exchange. Several member states and regions will be concerned by the project activities: Spain, France, Italy, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Poland, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary and Slovakia. The next EU Platform workshop (see below) will be co-organised by the project and the Platform. 

Fear of large carnivores, an issue of increasing importance in many member states and many Platform members deal with enquiries about the potential danger of large carnivores to people. The Platform has therefore decided to gather more information on the topic and to collaborate with other researchers examining the issue.

At the plenary meeting, the Platform members discussed the issues of fear, danger and of “bold wolves”. As wolves return to areas where there is little experience of living with them, there is a need to better understand what types of behaviour are normal and what are unusual. Wolf attacks were very rare in the twentieth century and unknown in Europe in the 21st century. None-the-less, information on how to react to wild animals is clearly lacking in many locations. Several Platform members are engaged on this topic. IUCN-LCIE are developing a way to collect information on bold wolves. EUROPARC is also organising a workshop on ‘Fear versus facts: effective communication, a means to improve co-existence with large carnivores in protected areas’ as part of their annual conference 18-21 September in Scotland.

EUROPARC with the support of the EU Large Carnivore Platform and IUCN-LCIE hosted a highly successful webinar on ‘Large Carnivores: Strategies for a Better Coexistence´. More than 150 participants joined the webinar and discussed the main conflicts resulting from coexistence with large carnivores in Europe and contributed with interesting examples of damage mitigation measures. More information is available on EUROPARC's website.

On 15 May 2018, 80 parliamentarians from the European member states reflected on how pastoralism can be maintained with the presence of the wolf. Jurgen Tack, ELO’s scientific director, presented the EU Platform at the event. More information on the conference is available online.

The Platform members the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)  and European Landowners' Organization (ELO) will host the 6^th EU Large Carnivore Platform Regional workshop as a side-event of the Pathways Europe 2018 conference on Tuesday, 18 September in Goslar, Germany. Rural development funding for prevention measures will be examined more closely. 

For further details about the workshop, contact the EU Platform Secretariat.

WWF Adria and the Large Carnivore Initiative for Europe of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN-LCIE) will host the 7^th EU Large Carnivore Platform Regional workshop on 'Coexistence between people and large carnivores in the Dinaric region' on 6 November 2018. The workshop will focus on the development of a Dinaric regional platform covering EU member states and accession countries.

For further details about the workshop, contact the EU Platform Secretariat.

Cantonal (regional) Wolf Groups have been established in several Swiss cantons. The main goals are to encourage discussion between stakeholders and improvement of relationships. The core groups organise meetings of all interest groups, excursions to look at measures on the ground and discussions with livestock owners. Stakeholders involved include cantonal authorities, representatives of (cantonal) farmer association, sheep breeder association, goat breeder association, hunting association, game wardens, WWF and Pro Natura, AGRIDEA (national coordinator for prevention measures), livestock guarding dog association and tourism interests. Since the groups are established on the cantonal level, there are differences in emphasis and membership between the different cantons.

For more information see the detailed description of the case study on the Platform website. 

A report describing ten good practice case studies is also available.