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“We organized the meeting to find out how each side understands what message is disseminated in public space precisely because of the applicable provisions in the Žuvintas Biosphere Reserve, because it was widely heard that hunting is possible. That is the purpose of this meeting and it was finally clarified how we treat whether it is possible or not. And according to all the legal acts and resolutions in force, the position is that hunting is not possible in this territory ”, L. Valalytė told Eltai.
The vice minister points out that there are two government decrees that prohibit the hunting of waterfowl in the Žuvintas biosphere reserve and urges hunters not to trust the widespread misinterpretation of the Žuvintas director.
“There are two government resolutions, one of which states very clearly that waterfowl and wetland birds cannot be hunted in areas recognized as important for migratory bird habitat. Another decree, which has been in force since October last year, clearly redefines the areas where hunting is prohibited while protecting those birds.
I think we really agreed that if there are two government resolutions linked together and there is a provision that specifically says that waterfowl and wetland birds cannot be hunted. (…) A fuzzy interpretation is simply misleading. We want to say that if the hunters plan to go hunting at the invitation of the Director of Žuvintas and tell them that it is allowed, then definitely do not do it, because it is not possible, “he said.
“Once again, the question arises how managers treat the legislation and read it, if (in one place – ELTA) something is not written, it means that other legislation is not valid either. That interpretation is fundamentally wrong, because ignorance does not exempts responsibility, “he added.
L. Valalytė acknowledged that some legal acts may seem confusing, adding that a special task force will be formed this fall to supplement the hunting standards and clearer regulation.
“There may be a bit of uncertainty, but that does not relieve me of responsibility and does not allow hunting. (…) It was decided that in the autumn a group would be created specifically to complement the hunting rules, establishing very clearly when and how it was possible to hunt in protected areas. (…) There should be a clearer regulation in the hunting rules, but it is not possible to spread the knowledge that is now spread by the administrators of (Žuvintas – ELTA) that hunting is possible in Žuvintas. That is not the case, ”said L. Valalytė.
At the time, A. Pranaitis, director of the Žuvintas Biosphere Reserve, admitted that during the meeting it was generally concluded that certain legal acts still prohibit the hunting of waterfowl in Žuvintas.
“In principle, we discovered one thing that some of the requirements of the legislation still apply to the Žuvintas Biosphere Reserve to the extent that they are not directly related to the hunting rules. That’s a problem, “he said.
A. Pranaitis Eltai stated that the main reason for not communicating with the Ministry of the Environment is confusion and ambiguity in legal acts.
(The lack of communication was caused by ELTA) is precisely because it is not entirely clear what is written in the hunting rules. Hunters have to follow a document, and we follow documents that hunters are basically unfamiliar with. (…) In this case, our provisions do not refer directly to hunting regimes. (…) The lawyers of the Ministry of the Environment continue to believe that the regulations on protected areas should be applied in any case, although they do not directly correlate in any way with the hunting regulations. The general conclusion was that (…) (hunters – ELTA) could not be penalized for hunting in any way, but rather (ELTA) would be penalized for violating protected areas, which is completely out of place and unrelated to the hunting, ”he said. Director of the fish reserve.
A. Pranaitis adds that although hunters in the reserve would not face fines for violating hunting rules, they would be punished for violating protected areas.
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