Analysis of game damage on the basis of judiciary documents in Nógrád County between 2015 and 2019

Abstract

The common use of habitats by people and game species has been causing conflicts for a long time. With the intensification of agriculture, the level of agricultural damage has also increased. In many cases farmers and game managers try to solve their related disagreements in court, often unsuccessfully. The aim of our research was to find out the reasons for these difficulties and to show possible solutions. We studied 55 judiciary documents in three courts in Nógrád County. Red deer was involved in 42 cases of damages (76%), wild boar 33 (60%), roe deer 21 (38%) and mouflon 3 (5%), caused mainly in maize (23,64%), forest, sunflower (12,73% for both) and grassland (5,45%). Proceedings lasted for 13,65 months on average; their median was 8 months.
The average claim of farmers was 1 514 610 HUF, its median was 783 000 HUF. At the end of the suits, farmers received the whole compensation in 8 cases (14,55%) and they got part of the relief on ten occasions (18,18%). Suits were ceased 14 times (25,45%) and no compensation was paid in 23 cases (41,82%). Ignorance of law and unprofessional expertise of farmers negatively influenced the judicial proceedings. Both farmers and game managers should be informed about the exact steps of the procedure for solving these long-lasting conflicts.