Shepherds and farmers in the Pyrenees are today (Saturday) holding a day of information at a péage station on a motorway in Haute Garonne. They will be offering motorists local produce as well as leaflets and information describing the effects of re-introducing wolves and bears into the mountains. They believe there have been considerable losses of sheep to bears and "almost daily" attacks by wolves.
At the same time, Jose Bové, a well known local ecologist and MEP, has declared that it is "impossible" to raise sheep in parts of the Aveyron. Himself a former sheep farmer on the Larzac plateau, Bové disputes official figures on the number of wolves in the area, citing local
eleveurs who believe there are at least 5 in an area of 40 x 20 kilometres, but also there are wolves crossed with dogs. He considers it impossible to adequately protect the flocks without endangering other activities such as walking and cycling.
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| Photo: Joel Saget/AFP |
Bové is notorious for having called on farmers in 2010 to shoot wolves, which are a protected species and for leading illegal "direct action" by burning or cutting down GM crops being grown legally.
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