The country is to have 300 wolves, but the question has long been where? The counties have disputed – now the Environmental Protection Agency is putting its foot down. The decision? More wolves in the south and fewer in the central part of the country.
The county administrative boards in Mid- and South Sweden have been unable to agree on how many wolf packs there should be in each area. In the discussions on distribution, they finally ended up with a pot of 25 wolves that no one wanted.
Now the Environmental Protection Agency has put its foot down and decided on the numbers for the different areas for the next two years.
This is a decision that changes the existing minimum levels, particularly in the southern part of the country. The existing minimum level has stated that there should be at least 300 wolves in the country – 285 in the central management area, ten in the north and five in the south.
The new figures? The minimum level in the central predator management area is set at 225 individuals, and the southern predator management area – which includes Skåne, Småland and Östergötland – gets 75 individuals, according to the Environmental Protection Agency in a press release.
"The decided predator policy means that the wolf stock is to be spread more across the country. This means, among other things, reducing the concentration of wolves where it is currently highest, which is in the central management area," says Hanna Ek, deputy head, wildlife management unit at the Environmental Protection Agency, in a press release.
The Environmental Protection Agency has also decided to transfer the opportunity to make decisions on licensed hunting of wolves to all counties in the central and southern predator management areas.
