A major problem revealed in the previous LIFE project is animal poaching, with the purpose of protecting the crops, orchards and sheepfolds. Our estimations show that about 10% of the bear populations are exposed to this phenomenon. This fact can endanger the lives of both humans and animals, since animals become extremely violent when they are caught.

Since tourism is an increasing activity, and it always brings increasing quantities of domestic wastes, it is clear that in the near future will appear problems concerning “garbage bears”. For preventing these types of problems, we deployed a campaign aimed at stopping inadequate strategies of waste management. The campaign is addressed both to local population and authorities.
In the awareness increasing campaign for preventing poaching and human – large carnivores’ conflicts, EPA Vrancea and LF ASD organised a series of 3 events:
1. In September 2006, at Putna Waterfall was organised a meeting with 65 local people and representatives from the local boards, police, professors, medical doctors and priests from Tulnici, Lepsa and Coza.
2. In February 2007 was organised a work meeting concerning poaching reduction, with decision factors at county level, starting from cases encountered in Vrancea and from citizens opinions. At the meeting participated representatives from the main institutions responsible for poaching control.
3. In May 2007, on the occasion of the Valea Neagra church consecration took place an awareness campaign for preventing poaching. At the manifestation were present approximately 500 people from Vrancioaia, Naruja, Nistoresti, Focsani, Paltin si Nejeru. On this occasion was installed a tent with posters and banners from the project, and people discussions took place, being distributed over 1000 informative materials. In the same time a group of 30 children from the Prahuda school, wearing t-shirts and caps with LIFE logo distributed leaflets and discussed with the participants at this meeting Action developed with the purpose of obtaining the same effects as by hunting, without respecting the legal conditions.

Legal framework:
All activities connected with hunting are legally regulated by laws, therefore being stipulated the types of weapons that can be used, the list of game species and the list of species for which hunting is illegal. Also, they are established periods of hunting for each species, and sanctions for breaking these dispositions.
According to the Law of hunting found and game protection, republished through the VII article of Law no. 654 from 20 November 2001.
rt. 35 (1): represents the infraction of hunting poaching and its punished with 1 -3 years of jail or a fine between 5.000 and 25.000 RON the fact committed: a. without hunting licence and legal authorisation, or by case without legal authorisation;
b. upon animal whose hunting is forbidden, or in periods in which according to the law their hunting is forbidden;
c. by using greyhounds or crossbred greyhounds;
d. at night, by using auto vehicles and lights, or appliances that allow aiming and shooting in the dark;
e. by using electric current, explosives, poisons, narcotics, electronic devices capable of killing, unauthorised traps, weapons other than those held in hand and other weapons than those authorised and homologated for hunting in Romania.
(2) The facts foreseen at (1) are punished with jail from 2 to 5 years, if they were made:
a. during the night, with the exception of game species at which hunting is allowed according to hunting regulations;
b. by two or more persons together;
c. by a person with work or public responsibilities for hunting, or by representatives of the judicial persons that have as activity game preserving or hunting; d. in hunting reservations.
e. Legal hunting periods
f. OUG 195/2005 - Environmental protection
Law no. 26/1996 – Forestry code
Law 103/1996 – Hunting found and game protection
g. Consequences:
h. Large carnivores control species density, which in their absence would overgrow, with the food resources they can obtain. In this manner, exemplars of harts, deer or chamois which can’t defend (being old or sick) are hunted by wolves, maintaining an ecosystems equilibrium that could be affected by an exaggerated growth of ungulates affecting the forest. These animals consume especially young branches and buds, preventing forest regeneration.