On April 14, 2026, a high-level event took place in the European Parliament building in Brussels. During a roundtable organized by the Spanish think tank OIKOS and the organization Legados, hosted by MEP Isabel Benjumea \u2014 Vice-Chair of the European Parliament\u2019s Intergroup on Biodiversity, Hunting, and the Countryside \u2014 participants discussed the economic and ecological role of hunting in Europe.<\/p>\n
Among the participants was Csaba Borboly, member and rapporteur of the European Committee of the Regions, Vice President of the Harghita County Council, and President of the Intercommunity Development Association for Rural Development in Harghita County. Several Members of the European Parliament also took part in the debate, including Lor\u00e1nt Vincze, RMDSZ\/UDMR MEP.<\/p>\n
Hunting is not romanticism. It is economy, nature, and circularity.<\/p>\n
Researchers from OIKOS analyzed hunting practices in seven EU Member States and the United Kingdom \u2014 their conclusion is clear: hunting is a strategic tool of the rural economy, and where it is regulated and science-based, it simultaneously contributes to biodiversity, local livelihoods, and public safety.<\/p>\n
The figures speak for themselves: in Northern Europe, game meat accounts for 13% of the food market, while in Romania \u2014 home to the largest brown bear population in the EU \u2014 this share is only around 2%. This is not a conservation success, but rather waste and lack of organization \u2014 while poaching and illegal methods destroy a nature-based economic circuit with a potential worth hundreds of millions of euros.<\/p>\n
What is the situation in Romania \u2014 and what have we done about it?<\/p>\n
Harghita County is one of the regions with the highest density of large carnivores in the European Union. The reality: every year there are numerous conflicts, poisonings, traps, and illegal shootings \u2014 because legislation does not provide effective protection, the compensation system does not function, and Bucharest lacks the political will to address the problems of rural communities, especially in Transylvania.<\/p>\n
UDMR is the only party in Romania that consistently represents this issue in Bucharest. USR, PNL, and PSD consistently avoid the topic. Csaba Borboly, as part of the UDMR team \u2014 and as rapporteur of the European Committee of the Regions \u2014 carries out work in Brussels that supports what progresses only with difficulty in Bucharest: normalization.<\/p>\n
What does the Regional Platform for Large Carnivores in Harghita propose?<\/p>\n
The Regional Platform for Large Carnivores, developed with the active participation of Harghita County \u2014 a pilot project funded by the European Parliament and referenced by the ENVE Committee \u2014 proposed an Action and Implementation Plan in 2025. The proposals are clear:<\/p>\n
Active population management based on science \u2014 with quotas, professional game managers, and biologists
\nRevision of protection status where overpopulation generates persistent safety risks
\nA dedicated EU-level funding mechanism within the 2028\u20132034 Multiannual Financial Framework \u2014 with direct access for regions<\/p>\n
The three proposals we are taking forward<\/p>\n
Reclassification of the brown bear from Annex IV to Annex V of the Habitats Directive, similar to the process initiated for the wolf in December 2024 \u2014 from \u201cstrictly protected\u201d to \u201cprotected.\u201d Data from Romania indicate a brown bear population significantly exceeding ecological carrying capacity.
\nStrict application of the derogation system \u2014 the Commission should initiate infringement procedures if Romania fails to properly apply Article 16 of the Habitats Directive.
\nMandatory compensation at EU level \u2014 cohesion and agricultural funds must be conditional: without proven compensation, there is no EU funding.<\/p>\n
The direction is clear: safety, science, and real wildlife management. We do not stop \u2014 we move forward.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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