Welsh Government refuses to ban shooting of Greenland White-fronted Geese
The Welsh Government has decided to continue to allow the shooting of Endangered Greenland White-fronted Geese.
Greenland White-fronted Geese are under serious threat of extinction, with the global population now below 20,000 birds and the wintering population in Wales at critically low levels. In the late 1990s, over 160 birds returned to their regular wintering site on the Dyfi estuary; that figure was down to only 24 last year, with a small number of sightings at one or two other places in north Wales. But, astonishingly, the Welsh Government announced this week that it will not implement a total ban on shooting White-fronted Geese across Wales.
Greenland White-fronted Goose is endangered yet the Welsh Government will continue to allow them to be shot (Photo: Richard Jackson)
According to RSPB Cymru Director, Katie-Jo Luxton: "When a species is declining so quickly that it is under threat of extinction, you'd think the least that those in power could do is to offer it legal protection to prevent it from being shot."
"It is not clear how the Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs came to this decision, but what we do know is that she has gone against the advice of Natural Resources Wales, Welsh Government's own statutory nature conservation and environmental regulator, as well as the opinions of a number of Wales's conservation organisations and a large number of individuals."
In February 2016, the Welsh Government launched a public consultation to gather feedback on various options on promoting the conservation of both races of White-fronted Goose in Wales: the endangered Greenland subspecies and the globally more common — but still threatened in the UK — European White-fronted Goose. These options ranged from a complete ban on shooting White-fronted Geese, to maintaining the current voluntary ban on shooting the Greenland form on land over which wildfowling clubs have specific rights to shoot.
RSPB Cymru urged the public to ask the Welsh Government to introduce a total ban on shooting both subspecies, resulting in 75 per cent of people who responded supporting an option for a total ban, and only six per cent objecting to this option.
Such a large weight of opinion for a total ban was clearly not enough for the Welsh Government and it has opted to maintain the current voluntary ban. This now leaves Wales as the only country in the world where families of Greenland White-fronted Geese overwinter regularly where they aren't legally protected from being shot.
Katie-Jo Luxton continued: "It goes without saying that we're bitterly disappointed with this decision, especially as the Welsh Government claims in its response statement that it's 'crucial we do all we can to conserve this iconic bird'. Our Government leads the world on warm words for nature, but we are not seeing this backed up with the conservation action required."
The world population of the Arctic goose species is in severe decline and, while the voluntary ban has been successful to date where participating wildfowling clubs shoot, voluntary measures cannot protect these birds in flight during migration or in their movements between roosting and foraging sites, where no voluntary agreement is in place.
RSPB Cymru is urging for the Welsh Government to commit to fund not only the additional research it has committed to in its response statement, but also any subsequent conservation action arising from this study, to ensure Wales plays its part in saving these stunning migratory birds and ensure that they are part of our landscape for generations to come.
Serikali ya Wales imekataa kupiga marufuku risasi ya Greenland White-fronted Geese Serikali ya Wales imeamua kuendelea kuruhusu risasi ya Greenland White-fronted Geese iliyo hatarini. Greenland White-fronted Geese ni chini ya tishio kubwa la kutoweka, na idadi ya kimataifa sasa chini ya ndege 20,000 na idadi ya majira ya baridi huko Wales katika viwango vya chini sana. Katika miaka ya 1990, zaidi ya ndege 160 walirudi kwenye eneo lao la kawaida la majira ya baridi kali kwenye mlango wa mto wa Dyfi, na idadi hiyo ilipungua hadi 24 tu mwaka jana, na idadi ndogo ya maono katika sehemu nyingine moja au mbili kaskazini mwa Wales. Serikali ya Wales imesema kuwa haitaweka marufuku ya jumla ya kupiga risasi kwa nyigu wa White-fronted nchini Wales. "Kama vile RSPB Cymru, ambayo inatoa huduma ya ""kuokoa"" wanyama, inaendelea kuamua kuondoa aina ya nyigu, lakini kwa sababu ya hali hiyo, serikali ya Wales inapaswa kutoa ulinzi wa kisheria ili kuzuia kutolewa kwa nyigu." """Hatujui wazi jinsi Waziri wa Mazingira na Masuala ya Vijijini alivyokuja kwa uamuzi huu, lakini tunajua ni kwamba amepinga ushauri wa rasilimali za asili za Wales, serikali ya Wales yenyewe ya uhifadhi wa asili na mdhibiti wa mazingira, na maoni ya mashirika kadhaa ya uhifadhi wa Wales na idadi kubwa ya watu." Katika Februari 2016, Serikali ya Wales ilizindua mashauriano ya umma kukusanya maoni juu ya chaguzi mbalimbali za kukuza uhifadhi wa jamii zote mbili za Goose White-fronted huko Wales: aina ya chini ya Greenland iliyo hatarini na ya kimataifa ya kawaida zaidi lakini bado imehatarishwa nchini Uingereza. "Hizi ni pamoja na ""marufuku kamili ya kupiga risasi ya White-fronted Geese"" na ""marufuku ya sasa ya hiari ya kupiga risasi ya Greenland Form kwenye ardhi ambayo vilabu vya ndege wa mwituni vina haki maalum ya kupiga risasi.""" RSPB Cymru ilihimiza umma kuomba Serikali ya Wales kuanzisha marufuku ya jumla ya kupiga risasi aina zote mbili, ikisababisha asilimia 75 ya watu waliojibu kuunga mkono chaguo la marufuku ya jumla, na asilimia sita tu kupinga chaguo hili. Kwa hivyo, kwa sababu ya uzito mkubwa wa maoni kwa marufuku kamili, ni wazi kwamba haitoshi kwa Serikali ya Wales na imechagua kudumisha marufuku ya sasa ya hiari. Wales ni nchi pekee duniani ambapo familia za Greenland White-fronted Geese hupita majira ya baridi kali bila ulinzi wa kisheria. "Katie-Jo Luxton aliendelea: ""Hakuna haja ya kusema kwamba tunafadhaika sana na uamuzi huu, hasa kwa kuwa Serikali ya Wales inadai katika taarifa yake ya kujibu kwamba ni muhimu tufanye kila tuwezalo kuhifadhi ndege huyu maarufu." Serikali yetu inaongoza ulimwengu katika maneno ya joto kwa asili, lakini hatuoni hii ikiungwa mkono na hatua ya uhifadhi inayohitajika. Idadi ya ndege wa Arctic inaongezeka kwa kasi, na ingawa marufuku ya hiari imefanikiwa hadi sasa, hatua za hiari haziwezi kulinda ndege hawa wakati wa kusafiri au katika harakati zao kati ya maeneo ya kulala na kutafuta chakula, ambapo hakuna makubaliano ya hiari. RSPB Cymru inahimiza Serikali ya Wales kujitolea kufadhili sio tu utafiti wa ziada ambao imejifunga katika taarifa yake ya kujibu, lakini pia hatua yoyote ya uhifadhi inayofuata inayotokana na utafiti huu, kuhakikisha Wales inachukua sehemu yake katika kuokoa ndege hawa wa kusafiri na kuhakikisha kuwa ni sehemu ya mazingira yetu kwa vizazi vijavyo.