\n
Introduction<\/strong> The event brought together representatives from several European mountainous regions facing challenges related to bears and other large carnivores. Decision-makers, mountain livestock farmers, tourism, and agricultural stakeholders from regions where bear presence already has significant economic and social impacts were invited to the first European meeting in Foix, with the aim of creating a common European action framework.<\/p>\n Brown Bear Meeting: A European Mountain Alliance for Large Carnivore Management<\/strong> Key political and professional actors involved:<\/strong><\/p>\n As part of the process, a draft European charter was prepared, to which partners \u2013 including Harghita County \u2013 can submit written proposals. The charter reflects a common position on protecting mountain communities and managing large carnivores. The French partners specifically designated Csaba Borboly to receive European predator data and utilize it at the professional and political level, reinforcing his leadership role in representing mountainous regions.<\/p>\n Legal Foundation and EU Frameworks<\/strong><\/p>\n Harghita County Large Carnivore Platform<\/strong> Current Situation and Overpopulation Problem<\/strong> Scientific observations and long-term data indicate that the bear population significantly exceeds the region\u2019s ecological and social carrying capacity. The lack of consistent population management has led to overpopulation, which is the direct cause of most human\u2013wildlife conflicts.<\/p>\n Legislative Proposals in the European Charter<\/strong> o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Developing a shared operational framework for identifying, classifying, and managing \u201cdangerous\u201d bears<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Transparency of population data, individual identification, and bear localization<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Strengthening analytical capacity and rapid DNA testing for problem bears<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Systematic involvement of local stakeholders in protocol development<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Permitting the use of 500 ml pepper spray<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Allowing mountain specialists to carry firearms<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Legal framework for deterrent devices<\/p>\n o\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Specialized training for cattle farmers, public officials, and authorized citizens<\/p>\n EU Competence and ENVE Role<\/strong> Harghita County\u2019s Call for European-Level Action<\/strong> Message of the ENVE Intervention<\/strong> Harghita County and Csaba Borboly\u2019s Role<\/strong><\/p>\n Regional Large Carnivore Platform \u2013 A Model<\/strong> Platform participants include:<\/strong><\/p>\n Csaba Borboly\u2019s Role<\/strong><\/p>\n Strengthening European Solidarity<\/strong> Strategic Goals and Progress<\/strong><\/p>\n Key objectives of Harghita County Action and Implementation Plan:<\/strong><\/p>\n Concrete measures in the region:<\/strong><\/p>\n European Perspective and Continuation of French Initiative<\/strong> Long-Term European Cooperation<\/strong> Conclusion: The Message<\/strong> The message is clear:\u00a0safety, science, and real wildlife management<\/strong>. Coexistence cannot rely solely on protection \u2013 active, science-based management, a fair support system, and coordinated governance are essential.<\/p>\n As Vice President of Harghita County Council, Csaba Borboly is committed to building a model where humans, nature, and rural life cooperate responsibly, transparently, and sustainably \u2013 for the shared future of Romania and Europe.<\/p>\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Introduction On December 5, 2025, in Brussels, at the meeting of the Environment, Climate Change, and Energy (ENVE) Committee of the European Committee of the Regions, Csaba Borboly, Vice President of Harghita County Council, spoke firmly on brown bear management and the European-level regulation of large carnivores. His speech clearly indicated that mountainous regions are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1622,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[84],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1621","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1621","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1621"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1621\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1623,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1621\/revisions\/1623"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1622"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1621"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1621"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1621"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nOn December 5, 2025, in Brussels, at the meeting of the Environment, Climate Change, and Energy (ENVE) Committee of the European Committee of the Regions, Csaba Borboly, Vice President of Harghita County Council, spoke firmly on brown bear management and the European-level regulation of large carnivores. His speech clearly indicated that mountainous regions are not only local stakeholders but also actively engage at the European political level in balancing human safety, rural livelihoods, and biodiversity protection. As Vice President of Harghita County, Csaba Borboly consistently supports legally grounded and politically ambitious solutions for managing large carnivores.<\/p>\n
\nThe Brussels intervention is closely linked to the Brown Bear Meeting in France, where representatives of mountainous regions \u2013 including Csaba Borboly \u2013 established a common European forum on coexistence with large carnivores. The meeting was organized by the \u201cParliament for the Future of Mountains\u201d (PAM09) in Ari\u00e8ge and the French DAATE (Directorate for Territorial Attractiveness, Planning and Environment), under the professional coordination of Tim Juvany.<\/p>\n\n
\nHarghita County\u2019s large carnivore action and implementation plan is based on EU nature conservation legislation \u2013 the Habitats Directive (92\/43\/EEC) and the Birds Directive (2009\/147\/EC) \u2013 as well as the European Large Carnivore Platform\u2019s recommendations. The plan emphasizes participatory, evidence-based decision-making and was developed with support from the European Commission under Service Contract No. 09.0201\/2023\/907799\/SER\/ENV.D.3.<\/p>\n
\nThe document notes that Harghita County hosts one of Europe\u2019s largest brown bear populations. In recent years, conflicts between humans and wildlife have increased in both frequency and severity:<\/p>\n\n
\nThe draft charter prepared by French partners proposes several key amendments under Article 16 of the Habitats Directive:<\/p>\n\n
\nThe charter proposes moving the brown bear from the \u201cstrictly protected\u201d category to the \u201cprotected\u201d category in EU legislation (Habitats Directive, Bern Convention).<\/li>\n\n
\nENVE Committee findings
\nThe ENVE Committee and the EU Biodiversity Strategy emphasize that large carnivore management can only succeed through multi-level governance, involving local and regional authorities, scientific approaches, and appropriate EU legal frameworks. This principle is not just a recommendation but part of the established EU competence.<\/p>\n
\nHarghita\u2019s action plan explicitly requests European interventions:<\/p>\n\n
\nCsaba Borboly\u2019s speech in Brussels combined local experience with highlighting EU competences:<\/p>\n\n
\nHarghita\u2019s Regional Large Carnivore Platform serves as a model in the EU by:<\/p>\n\n
\n
\n
\nToday\u2019s Brussels intervention gives new momentum to this process, demonstrating that:<\/p>\n\n
\n
\n
\nDraft European Charter:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n
\nThe plan aims to maintain sustainable European collaboration:<\/p>\n\n
\nCsaba Borboly\u2019s speech in Brussels demonstrates that the large carnivore issue is not only local or national but present on the EU political agenda. Harghita County is not a passive observer but an active shaper of European large carnivore policy.<\/p>\n