Five New Brown Bear Intervention Teams to Be Set Up in National Parks

Bratislava, December 18 (TASR) - Five new brown bear intervention teams will be set up in Slovakia's national parks as of January 1, including three at State Nature Conservation (SOP), one in the Tatra National Park (TANAP) and one in the Low Tatras National Park (NAPANT), according to a proposal approved by the government on Wednesday.

By the end of next year, Muran, Poloniny, and Fatra intervention teams should be added. The current five bear strike teams in Slovakia, namely North, South, West, Podpolanie and Ponitrie, will be replaced by three new teams, namely West, Centre and East.

According to the ministry, the main advantage of creating a strike team in each national park is that the national park administration staff will be familiar with the ownership conditions, user relations, the local natural conditions and will cooperate with the district authorities within the powers of the national park. "By forming independent strike teams in national parks we'll improve communications with municipalities, livestock farmers and users of hunting grounds and other affected entities," it claimed.

TANAP currently has service vehicles, scare and kill equipment, observation, communications and documentation equipment, as well as personal protective gear for the team's work. NAPANT has service vehicles, observation, communications and documentation equipment, along with personal protective gear. "In the course of 2025, other necessary equipment and means related to the activities of the intervention teams from SOP will be allocated for national park administrations," declared the ministry.

As of December 16, there had been 1,981 reports of bear damage, encounters and the presence of bears this year. Last year there were 1,644 such reports.