Harghita County seeks EU action as bear sightings surge, prompting daily alerts

The council of Harghita County in Romania has reported a sharp increase in human‑brown bear conflicts, issuing 148 alerts this year. Since April, residents have been warned an average of three times per day as bears have entered streets in several towns – five alerts in Csíkszereda, nine in Gyergyószentmiklós, fifteen in Székelyudvarhely, and a peak of sixteen in the village of Zetelaka.

County council president Bíró Barna Botond sent a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen calling for EU‑wide regulation that balances biodiversity protection with heightened public safety. He noted that local and national authorities lack sufficient tools to manage the situation, and he counts on the support of European Parliament members Winkler Gyula and Vincze Lóránt, as well as Agriculture Minister Tánczos Barna and the RMDSZ party, to push the issue at the EU level.