Orsi problematici in Trentino: vecchi problemi e nuovi inadeguati rimedi

More and more frequently the decrees and the ordinances of the President of the Autonomous Province of Trento (PAT) concerning the brown bears (Ursus arctos) in Trentino are challenged by animal welfare organizations before the Regional Court of Administrative Justice (TRGA) of Trento and the Council of State. The present paper analyzes the recent events of some brown bears in Trentino from the perspective of international and EU law, in particular, as regards possible derogations from protection measures concerning protected species. The jurisprudence of the TRGA of Trento and the Council of State and the outcome of some of these events provide the starting point for some reflections concerning the welfare of captive animals and the regime of zoos or similar structures as ex situ conservation measures.