MANAGER
The government’s cheap tricks were quickly seen through.
EXCHANGE: Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Environment Minister Andreas Bjelland Eriksen propose to reduce the population of wolverines and lynx to appease reindeer owners who are losing pasture due to power development. It is a failed strategy. Photo: Frederik Ringnes / NTB Show more
Editor: This is an editorial from Dagbladet, and expresses the newspaper’s view. Dagbladet’s political editor is responsible for the editorial.
Published on Saturday 23 December 2023 – 21:24
How to reduce the level of conflict between reindeer husbandry and power development in the north and between nature considerations and energy measures? The government has come up with a plan, and the answer is to make even greater encroachments on nature. That shouldn’t surprise anyone. Norway has a government that uses every little excuse to shoot endangered predators. But the government’s proposal to take out wolverines and lynx to make way for power development is an attempt at political horse-trading even reindeer owners don’t buy.
The Norwegian Environment Agency will start with “investigating the reduction of population targets for lynx and wolverine with the aim of reducing the burden on reindeer husbandry”. In this way, the government fulfills a long-standing demand from the Sámi Parliament and hopes that it can compensate for the loss of grazing areas in connection with the power development that is needed, among other things to electrify Melkøya. Neither conservationists nor reindeer owners see the logic in the mix-up, but the agreement ends there. Reindeer owners also believe that a reduction in the predator population is not sufficient. It is golden eagles that kill the most individual animals in the reindeer tribe. Eagles must also be taken out.
Trade-off between necessary Power development and consideration of nature is a classic conflict in Norwegian politics. When the rights of indigenous peoples are also taken into account, it quickly becomes explosive. The government barely had time to clean up the Fosen conflict before it went on a new rampage by throwing out a package of measures without even having discussed it with the Sámi Parliament first, according to Sámi Parliament president Silje Karine Muotka, who tells NRK that she is “surprised” above the procedure.
A voice for the vulnerable children
Internal to the government it may have seemed like a smart idea to sweeten the pill with the extraction of a couple of endangered animal species, but the cheap trick was quickly seen through. Venstre’s Ola Elvestuen believes the move confirms that this is the most anti-predator government of all time. In recent times, unfortunately, he may be right. It is probably not surprising with Sp in government, but Ap ministers in the Ministry of the Environment make no effort to protect red-listed species that are classified as “highly endangered” or “critically endangered”.
The red list is, of course does not prevent the removal of animals, but is a powerful warning about the viability of the species in Norway. In theory, the aim is for the species to be removed from the list, but in practice the government pursues a predator policy which ensures that the “big four” remain threatened. Now two of them are used as buttons and glossy images in exchange for pastures. It is a short-term policy in a long-term plan.
2023-12-23 20:25:48
#Sacrifice #predator
