State directorate allows beavers to be shot

A pond farm in the Upper Lusatian Heath and Pond Landscape biosphere reserve has been authorized to shoot beavers for the first time - as a last resort if no other measures prove effective. The Saxony State Directorate justified the permit on the grounds of the serious damage that the beaver had caused to the farm. The pond owner had submitted the application. It is an exceptional decision for this individual case. Conservationists reacted with horror.

Shooting as a last resort

"Priority was given to a so-called live removal with relocation to France. Only when the possibilities of live removal are demonstrably exhausted does the decision also permit killing as a last resort," a spokeswoman for the regional directorate said. However, it is not currently assumed that this final step - culling - will be necessary.

"The approval is intended to limit the economic damage to the group of ponds and to sustainably secure the group of ponds as a key component of the local protected area (FFH area)," the authority stated.

Dam breakage and high repair costs

The company has incurred repair costs of 190,000 euros since 2019. A dam also broke in June. The damage is again in the tens of thousands. "Without intervention, this kind of damage would have to be expected regularly in the future."

The nature conservation associations Nabu, BUND, Grüne Liga and Naturschutzverband Sachsen sharply criticized the decision. "Especially in a biosphere reserve, which is supposed to protect diversity and natural processes and is considered a model for the interaction between humans and nature, the decision of the state directorate to kill the beaver is particularly questionable," they said.

Nature conservation associations call for a different approach

The exemption permit must be withdrawn and the focus placed on near-natural management instead. The affected pond owner could also be offered other areas to avoid the conflict.

The beaver is strictly protected in Germany. For a time, it was considered almost extinct, but populations have since recovered.