A broad, numerically significant and politically cross-cutting mobilization. More than 400,000 citizens signed the four petitions promoted by the Capellino Foundation, Legambiente, Lipu and WWF to ask Parliament to stop changes to Law 157/92 on wildlife protection. The signatures were symbolically delivered to Palazzo Madama during a press conference sponsored by Senator Nicola Irto.
The demand is: withdraw the bill that gives the green light to double-headed guns, do not expand the list of huntable species, exclude those in poor conservation status, and ban cruel practices such as the capture of wild birds and the use of live decoys. In the background is a broader demand: reaffirm the centrality of independent science and the precautionary principle, strengthen biodiversity protection, and increase safety guarantees for those who live in and frequent rural, mountainous and peri-urban areas.
The most controversial issues
Environmental and animal rights groups speak of a “twisting” of the regulatory framework. Among the most contested points are the enlargement of huntable species, the extension of hunting periods, and the possibility of increasing the spaces open to hunting activities, including state-owned areas, forests, mountain passes, and territories with high tourist use. There is also criticism of the reopening to live decoys, a practice already the subject of European infringement procedures, and the downsizing of ISPRA’s role in favor of the Technical Committee on Hunting Fauna, which is considered too unbalanced toward the hunting world.
The safety issue weighs as heavily as the environmental one. The organizations recall the growth of outdoor tourism: millions of Italians choose trekking, cycling and hiking, with tens of millions of presences estimated each year. The coexistence of recreational activities and the use of firearms in the same areas, they argue, requires more rules and risk prevention, not a loosening of protections.
“Polls commissioned from Ipsos and Istituto Piepoli indicate that 85 percent of Italians consider hunting a safety risk, 78 percent consider it ethically unacceptable , and 94 percent call for it to be abolished or severely restricted,” adds Pier Giovanni Capellino, founder and president of Capellino Foundation. “Our next step is to present the 2026-2032 policy document now and announce a White Paper on biodiversity by the end of the year. Among the proposals: a stop until 2032 to new licenses, a stop to hunting tourism, a reduction in hunting days, a digital badge and a national registry managed by Ispra, a stop to lead, and the conversion of 5 million hectares to organic agricultural use and nature tourism. The program also aims to convert up to 80 percent of agricultural soils to organic and agroecological use, a 75 percent reduction in land consumption by 2029, and tax measures to support biodiversity. The document will also be presented at the European level to promote an economic model that puts nature at the center of public policy.”
Voices from the Senate
The meeting was attended by numerous parliamentarians from different sides: in addition to Irto, Senators Elena Sironi and Gisella Naturale for the 5 Star Movement, Senators Michele Fina and Congresswomen Patrizia Prestipino and Eleonora Evi for the Democratic Party, and Senator Michaela Biancofiore of Civici d’Italia, who expressed a critical stance toward the bill.
Antonino Morabito spoke of citizens “strongly concerned about the possible loosening of protections.” Dante Caserta reiterated that biodiversity and nature “are not negotiable,” also recalling the new constitutional dictate. Giovanni Albarella called the idea that hunting can contribute to the protection of biodiversity “paradoxical.”
The alternative proposals
Capellino Foundation, Legambiente, Lipu, and WWF Italy suggest shelving the bill and focusing on balancing measures: banning hunting at minimum distances from homes and trails, stopping on days of maximum collective use, requiring high-visibility devices and digital tracking systems, and allocating a significant portion of hunting fees to land controls.
The framework, they recall, has changed: the protection of the environment, biodiversity and ecosystems is now among the fundamental principles of the Constitution. And within this framework, they conclude, citizen safety and wildlife protection must remain uncompressible priorities.
