France Faces EU Court Battle Over Illegal Bird Hunting Practices

European Commission announced on Wednesday that it was referring France to the EU Court of Justice for refusing to ban the use of nets in bird hunting, notwithstanding the many warnings before.

The Commission stated that France still allows the use of horizontal and vertical nets to catch certain bird species in five southwestern departments, directly contravening the EU Birds Directive. The directive clearly specifies that large-scale, indiscriminate capture methods may only be allowed if a member State can prove that it meets specific derogation criteria. France has failed to prove this.

According to the Commission, “Nets are banned in the catching of birds, unless member states meet strict derogation criteria, which France has not shown.”

The EU has continuously urged France to stop this practice, providing verbal warnings in 2019, 2020, and 2023. However, the steps taken by the French authorities have been described as insufficient, which is why it ultimately transferred the matter to court.

The French environment and agriculture ministries were not available for comment.

The EU Birds Directive is intended for the protection of all wild bird species in the Union and explicitly prohibits harmful practices such as hunting, capturing, nest destruction, and egg collection. Conservation groups argue that successive French governments have kept flouting the EU laws designed to protect birds.

Yves Verhilhac, of the French Bird Protection League, criticized the country’s lawmakers for bowing to the lobbies of hunters and farmers.

“For decades, our government has shamed the EU bird protection directives, and they have been finding all possible loopholes to salvage its approach. The EU is our last hope,” Verhilhac said.

In another case in the bird protection, the EU Court of Justice ruled against France in 2021 for its traditional practice of trapping songbirds with glue. That latest lawsuit might impose stricter measures against France.