Mr. Jan Szyszko
					Minister Srodowiska RP
					Ul. Wawelska 52/54
					00-922 Warszawa
					POLAND

According to an application made by The Polish Hunting Association to Ministry of Environment, in case of establishing derogation on hunting for wolf in season from 1st of September to 31st of March, using the methods of individual hunting.

	Dear Ministry,

I am writing to you with reference to the news I have found on The Polish Hunting Association's website concerning mentioned above application. I would like to request you to dismiss this application.

Hunters are making slash-and-burn campaign for wolves for many years and I think that some things said by them need to be straighten out.

1. According to calculations made by scientists from The Mammal Research Institute from Polish Academy of Science a number of wolves in Poland is estimated at 446 to 625 individuals (average: 535), not 1200-1300 as hunters from the Polish Hunting Association say. Taking into consideration, that hunters want to kill 60 wolves each year, it is easy to understand why the number of wolves given by them is so much higher then estimated by scientists. At the same time, it is obvious, that shooting so large number of individuals of endangered species is an absurd.

2. The estimations carried out form 2001 show that the number of wolves in Poland is constant or slightly decreasing. Taking into consideration, that whole population of wolves in Poland is strongly diffused, it have problems with free moving from one place to another and poaching, shooting even a small number of wolves may cause the size of population decreasing. The shooting of 60 wolves means 12% decrease in its quantitive size, but if you take into consideration, that alfa individuals of packs may be killed (males and females as well), it may bring out to disintegrate many packs and in consequence to death of an offspring. The lone wolves also may hunt alone, what means that they will choose easier pray to catch - the farm animals. The events foreseen above lead to next attacks and putting pressure by some groups on these animals and the next cause for another reducing the wolf population.

3. Polish Hunting Association says, that in Finland hunting for wolf is legal although its population is 120 individuals (another example of oversizing the number of wolves, there are no more then 100 wolves in Finland) is an absurd and illogic, because when we are going to think in this way, we may say, that there is no democracy in Belorussia so we may make it like them in Poland.

I'm interested in an environment protection and ecological problems and I am strongly concerned by some groups putting a pressure to reduce a number of wolves in Poland (this species plays very important role in ecosystem) and telling lies about these animals to the public opinion. I think that in this particular situation, it is a duty of Ministry of Environment to protect this species from extinction.

At the same time, farmers complain that wolves kill their farm animals. I think that there is a compromise solution of this problem. The farmers should be educate how to protect their animals from wolf's attacks. The shooting is not a resolution.

I hope that similar as in case of an application of voivode of Podkarpacie from 7th of January 2002, number OŚ-V-6120-1/02 concerning shooting 50 wolves, the Ministry would ask for opinion The State Council for Nature Conservation, which surely will not allow another shooting.

								Sincerely yours

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