BUCHAREST (AFP) — Authorities in the Romanian town of Brasov are planning to install ultra-sound devices to chase away bears, which have been making increasing forays into town, the environment ministry said Friday.
The devices will be installed around the town centre at first and will later spread to other vulnerable neighbourhoods within a 12-kilometre (7.5-mile) perimeter, the ministry added.
"It's a pilot project that we will then be able to install in other tourist locations that are at risk," said Environment Minister Attila Korodi.
Bears have been increasingly venturing into town in the past few years, leading to several deadly attacks, including one in August in which a 20-year-old man was torn to shreds by a bear searching for food, as he was sleeping on a bench in downtown Brasov.
"While other countries are making efforts to protect and preserve this endangered species, Romania has about 60 percent of Europe's bear population," Korodi said.
It is only growing bigger thanks to the abundance of easily obtainable food.
"In the past, a bear had to walk for miles to find food, but today it can easily find it in places that are accessible," such as rubbish bins which the animals now search on a regular basis, Korodi said.
Romania has between 6,000 and 6,200 bears, including 800 in Brasov county alone.
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