The massacre of the wild mouflon sheep in the Sierra de Espuña will stop as Congress passes a law giving the species protection.
The authorities have been carrying out an order to kill the animals after they were declared “invasive and exotic” and blamed for the deterioration of the wildlife and the trees and shrubs in the area. This decision has now been reversed.
Congress also issued protection order for the rainbow trout, the carp, the red crab and the American bison, all of which were subject to eradication orders.
A proposal by the Partido Popular, modifying the Natural Patrimony and Biodiversity Law of 2007, was accepted by Congress, which allows for economic benefit from certain exotic animals, in that certain protected animals can be hunted outside their ecosystems, where they have settled for less than 10 years.
The PP claims that the eradication of the muflon sheep would lead to the loss of 4,000 employment posts in rural areas and that some 3.5 million euros has already been lost in the Sierra del Espuña, where hunting has been suspended during the cull.
The Party claim that “controlled and regulated hunting” of the muflon sheep will provide better protection for the animal and the environment.
