Hunters will be able to benefit from exemptions from confinement to avoid the "proliferation" of wild boar or deer responsible for significant damage to crops.

These "regulatory actions" will be decided at the local level by the prefects in conjunction with local actors.

Hunters will be able to benefit from exemptions from confinement to avoid the "proliferation" of wild boar or deer responsible for significant damage to crops, said Sunday the Secretary of State for Biodiversity.

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"Avoid an increase in damage to crops"

"During this period of confinement, we must avoid an increase in the damage done to crops, forests and property by a proliferation of large game populations such as wild boar or deer," the Secretary of State said on Sunday. Bérangère Abba in a press release.

"It is only for this purpose and at the request of the administrative authority that hunting actions can take place in the coming weeks", she added.

Big game regulation actions will be decided at the local level

Every year, hunters have to pay millions of euros in compensation to farmers for damage caused by wild boars.

In this context, after the publication of the containment rules, discussions had been initiated between the authorities and the National Federation of Hunters (FNC), which highlights its public service mission linked to this regulation of large game.

These large game regulation actions will be decided at the local level by the prefects in conjunction with local actors to "define in each department the harvesting objectives", said the Secretary of State.

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The organization of hunting with hounds will not be authorized

These samples can only be taken by hunts and target shooting, not by the hunting organization.

"I don't want us to say that the hunters waive anything and continue to hunt, that's not what we asked. But if we don't go, how are we going to do it? ? "FNC President Willy Schraen said on Sunday.

According to him, between a third and a quarter of large game samples are taken in France in November.

"Normally, just for wild boars, we have to kill 500,000 before the end of the year. You imagine if we do not go hunting! That's 500,000 more wild boars on the territory, maybe as many deer" , likely to cause damage in fields in spring, he insisted.

"Six or seven species likely to cause problems"

Discussions with the prefects could concern according to him "six or seven species likely to pose problems": wild boar and roe deer, but also other deer, as well as rabbits, hares, pheasants or pigeons in certain departments.

The local consultations will also make it possible to "specify the sanitary conditions and barrier gestures to be respected during these exceptional hunting actions", specified the Secretary of State.