Barb Wire Fence On Polish-Belarusian Border Harms Belovezhskaya Pushcha's Wildlife - WWF

A barb wire fence that was constructed by Poland on border with Belarus to prevent illegal migration is having harmful effect on the wildlife of Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park, a representative of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) told RIA Novosti

BRUSSELS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 26th January, 2022) A barb wire fence that was constructed by Poland on border with Belarus to prevent illegal migration is having harmful effect on the wildlife of Belovezhskaya Pushcha National Park, a representative of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) told RIA Novosti.

On January 13, the Belarusian Border Committee said that a European bison has died on the Polish-Belarusian border as it could not cross the bard wire fence. The service added that the fence prevents the seasonal migration of wildlife between countries. On Thursday, it was reported that 20 bison had been trapped in the barb wire on the border. The Polish border guard and environment ministry have rejected the reports.

"WWF Poland is aware of the death of European bison individual as reported by Belarusian officials and media. Any physical barrier of such kind will have negative effects on wildlife and ecosystems and from nature conservation perspective should be avoided. This is particularly important for such precious ecosystem as Bialowieza Forest (Belovezhskaya Pushcha) - transboundary World Heritage Site that is shared between Belarus and Poland," Tomasz Pezold Knezevic, Senior Biodiversity Conservation Specialist WWF Poland, said.

WWF urged sides to "look for pragmatic solutions for this problem" and called on international institutions, such as the European Commission, UNESCO and the Bern Convention, to "act as a mediator and expertise provider" on the issue, the representative said.

After thousands of middle Eastern migrants flocked to the Polish-Belarusian border, Poland built the 8 feet tall razor-wire fence along the border in September. In November, the Polish government announced replacement of the fence with an "impenetrable wall." On Tuesday, the Polish border guard said it has begun construction of the 16 feet high barb wire fence. The service added that the 115 mile long fence will be equipped with night vision cameras and motions sensors. The fence will contain 22 wicket gates to allow migration of wild animals.