Wallonia has decided to introduce new measures to combat the wild boar overpopulation that has been observed in the region for several years, Walloon Minister for Hunting, Willy Borsus (MR), announced on Wednesday.
In practical terms, the shooting of wild boar on plains at night will now be authorised under certain strict conditions. Setting traps will also be possible in areas where hunting is difficult. This is particularly the case in more rural areas and to the north of the Sambre-et-Meuse corridor, where wild boar are highly mobile.
Additional drives may also be organised at the end of the hunting season if it is felt that the shooting targets cannot be met and that this situation is likely to be detrimental to agricultural crops or lead to increased health risks.
At the same time, feeding will gradually be banned, initially for part of the driven hunting season. The first feeding ban will run from 21 December 2023 to 20 February 2024 inclusive. For the following two seasons, the ban will begin on 1 November and end on 31 March inclusive. Finally, from the 2026-2027 season, the ban will begin at the same time as the hunting season (i.e. from 1 October to 31 March inclusive).
Finally, the government has agreed to extend the hunting season until 20 February for the 2023-2024 season and until 31 January for the 2024-2025 season.
"The overpopulation of wild boar is a major problem in Wallonia. To this end, I have set up the first wild boar shooting plans (91,915 wild boars killed since 2019). Unfortunately, despite the strong mobilisation of hunters, we need to continue and step up our efforts," Borsus stated.
