Lift of the Hunting Ban in Amvrakikos Wetlands Imperils Globally Threatened Species

Eleven* environmental NGOs once more witness the irrational policy that the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Climate Change has adopted regarding the protected areas of Greece.

The Alternate Minister for Environment, Energy and Climate Change, Mr. Stavros Kalafatis, ostentatiously ignoring not only the Hellenic Ornithological Society filed protest, which expresses the opinion of the NGOs represented by Amvrakikos Management Body and documents the incompatibility of hunting in the most environmentally sensitive areas of Amvrakikos National Park, but also the Amvrakikos Wetlands Management Body (MB) proposal, has designated an unconditional lifting of the hunting ban in wetland areas in the heart of the National Park.
 
This decision runs totally counter to the recent commitments made by the Minister of Environment, Energy and Climate Change, Mr. Ioannis Maniatis, to the representatives of the NGOs during their meeting on the settlement of the problems of Greek Protected Areas. The Minister asked NGOs’ proposals for the effective safeguarding of Protected Areas, but the fact that their already submitted recommendations are not even taken into account raises many questions on whether this procedure has any meaning.
 
What should also be mentioned is that Mr. Kalafatis did not take into consideration MB’s proposal for a trial hunting period under certain conditions in the Zone A, at the core of the National Park for the present year. Consequently, hunting activities are also allowed in other areas of the wetland on any day of the week, without even some specific restrictions, which are necessary for this sensitive ecosystem. This move practically invalidates any attempt for cooperation and consultation made by the MB for the settlement of poaching issue.
 
It should be noted that the Hellenic Ornithological Society has an established presence in the area for decades, collecting systematically data about the avian fauna of Amvrakikos Gulf, the most important habitat of the Globally Threatened Ferruginous Duck (Aythya nyroca) in Greece, and a refuge for many other globally threatened bird species.

It is recalled that, in accordance with Law 3937/2011 for Biodiversity, the only activities allowed in Nature Conservation Areas are those not harming the natural environment and not opposing to the protection purposes for the area. However, despite the scientific evidences proving the negative impact of the arbitrary lift of the hunting ban on protected species of the National Park, the Ministry’s authorities insists on actions that put the protected species of Amvrakikos at serious risk.
 
Besides, hunting activities in Ramsar Wetlands have been designated as “non compatible” with the protection and management of the protected areas by case-law of the Council of State (C.o.S. 1342/1992).
 
Given that the Ministry’s decision jeopardizes the protection of avian fauna in one of the most significant wetlands of southern Europe, the NGOs cannot but directly inform the European Commission, the Ramsar Convention Bureau and BirdLife Europe of the negative precedent attempted, so that they take all the necessary measures in their jurisdiction.
 
The NGOs call upon Mr. Kalafatis to immediately withdraw this irrational and practically illegal decision, and to allow for the time needed so that the Amvrakikos Wetlands Management Body in cooperation with all the stakeholders find the optimal solution that will ensure the highest possible protection of Amvrakikos Gulf, an ecosystem of global importance .
 
Contact information
Hellenic Ornithological Society
Lambros Katerinopoulos: +30 6976674270, Apostolis Kaltsis: +30 6937911948
Society for the Environment and Cultural Heritage
Daphne Mavrogiorgos: +30 6977205351