The Italian Parliament has approved the downgrading of the wolf’s protection status, reducing it from a “strictly protected” to a “protected” species. The measure was included in the European delegation law, the provision that transposes various European Union directives and regulations into national law.
After the green light from the House, therefore, the Senate also voted in favor of the law: 78 votes in favour, 2 against and 57 abstentions.
However, the decision has sparked a strong debate between environmental associations, experts and part of the scientific world, who fear it could represent a reverse in the protection of wildlife in Italy.
“A political choice, not a scientific one”
According to numerous environmental organizations, the provision would not be supported by adequate scientific bases and would risk compromising the results achieved in recent decades in the conservation of the species.
This day represents a further setback in the policy of conservation of wildlife heritage – declared Annamaria Procacci, ENPA wildlife manager. We are hitting a precious species that plays a fundamental role in natural balances as the main predator of ungulates.
The wolf, the associations remind us, is a key species in ecosystems: its presence contributes to naturally regulating ungulate populations and maintaining the balance of natural environments.
A species still vulnerable
Despite the return of the wolf in many Italian areas in recent decades, experts point out that the population remains fragile and subjected to various pressures. Among the most relevant problems are:
For this reason, according to many researchers, lowering the level of protection could weaken ongoing conservation efforts.
Stefano Raimondi, national biodiversity manager of Legambiente, is also critical:
Lowering the level of wolf protection will not resolve existing social conflicts – explains Raimondi. Basing this decision on political, and not scientific, will risks compromising the results achieved in conservation and creating a dangerous precedent for other protected species as well.
Furthermore, according to the association, there is no solid evidence that selective culling is truly effective in reducing conflicts with livestock activities.
What really changes for the wolf
The downgrading does not mean that the wolf will become huntable. Specifically, hunting remains prohibited, but the new status could make the procedures for authorizing control interventions or selective killing easier, increasing the discretion of local administrations.
Many experts underline that the most effective way to reduce conflicts between wolves and livestock remains the prevention of predation and that tools such as electrified fences, guard dogs and dissuasion systems have proven in many contexts to be much more effective than culling in reducing attacks on livestock. Measures which, however, are not yet spread uniformly throughout Italy.
For environmentalists and part of the scientific community, the risk is that the decision represents a cultural and political signal that weakens the protection of wildlife, just as European biodiversity is already under strong pressure. The debate on the future of the wolf in Italy therefore remains open and touches on a broader question: how to reconcile nature conservation with human activities and with the needs of communities living in rural areas?
