With the start of September [return to school and work after the summer]comes the start of the hunting season in France, with the country’s 1,313,000 hunters authorized to pursue and kill 90 different species of animals.
The season starts at different times depending on the department, starting in Corsica on the first Sunday of September.
During the following weekends, it launches into the southern and central departments of France, reaching the northern regions, including Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Ile-de-France, Lorraine and Normandy on the fourth Sunday of the month.
According to the main French law relating to ecology and rural life – the Environmental Code – no one has the right to hunt on the property of others without the consent of the owner.
However, hunting is often practiced by default and those with large plots must show a willingness to ban it, although it is generally banned within 150m of homes and therefore those with smaller gardens do not should generally not be affected.
What should I do?
If you are the owner of a piece of land and you want to put in place a hunting ban, the steps to take depend firstly on whether hunting on your territory is covered by a hunting society, which is a simple association (“club”).
In other regions of France, hunting is organized by an organization approved by the prefecture, called ACCA (communal hunting association approved) or AICA.
You can check with your town hall to find out.
In areas covered by a hunting society, you can prohibit hunting by sending a letter to the president of the association with a copy to your mayor.
The process is more complex when it comes to an ACCA, unless the land in question is within a perimeter of 150m around your house or if it is completely fenced, in which case it is automatically prohibited.
In both cases, you can get advice from the LPO or the Aspas nature associations. These encourage people to declare their lands as LPO or Aspas wildlife “refuges” as part of the process.
Sending a letter to your local hunting federation
The LPO has a sample letter suggestion which we have translated and which you can find at the bottom of this article.
In 2019, a new procedure was put in place requiring landowners to send their mail with acknowledgment of receipt to the president of the Departmental Federation of Hunters, and not to their prefecture.
After being validated, the letter will be forwarded to the President of ACCA, who will have two months to give his opinion. In total, the hunting federation has four months from receipt of the letter to make its decision.
It should also be noted that this process can only be undertaken a maximum of six months before the renewal of your local ACCA administration, an event which only occurs every five years. The ban will only come into effect after this renewal.
You will also need to provide details of the location of your land and a printout of the cadastral cadastral maps (see cadastre.gouv.fr).
The cadastral details consist of letters indicating the ‘section’ and then a specific ‘parcel’ number (or numbers if the area is large).
Sample letter requesting a ban on hunting on your property
Object : Request for withdrawal of land(s) from the ACCA’s hunting territory under Articles L. 422-10 5° and L. 422-14 of the Environmental Code
Attachments : cadastral plans and deeds of ownership
The __/__/____
Mister President,
Articles L. 422-10 5° and L. 422-14 of the Environment Code authorize us to request the withdrawal of our land from the ACCA (or from the AICA as the case may be) and to prohibit the hunting in the name of personal convictions.
Consequently, I ask you to take note of the withdrawal of the ACCA from the municipality of ………….. from the following lands:
– address, cadastral number and area + cadastral map + deed of ownership in attachments for each plot
I certify on my honor that this is all of my properties.
I also ask you to remove my name from the list of members of the ACCA of the municipality of ………………………..
This decision to withdraw is motivated by my commitment to the protection of nature. I undertake to prohibit any practice of hunting and not to practice myself on these plots.
I agree to report my land by materializing the ban on hunting for others by affixing signs bearing the words “hunting prohibited”
Finally, I know my responsibility, as owner, in the event of damage which could be caused by the game coming from my fund.
(To be put only if your land is registered as an LPO Refuge): I would also like to inform you that these lands are registered as an LPO Refuge (League for the Protection of Birds), whose main objective is to preserve the fauna and flora. wild.
I have taken note that my withdrawal will be effective at the next renewal of your ACCA and/or AICA. And I therefore ask you to send me the date of creation as well as the renewal date(s) of the ACCA and/or AICA on which my plots depend in order to know the effective exit date of the ACCA/AICA.
Counting on your diligence, please accept, Mr. President, the expression of my most respectful greetings.
Signature
Copy for information to:
Mr. President of the ACCA of the municipality of……………………………………………
Mr. Mayor of the municipality of……………………………………………………
Copy to the prefecture /DDT/Hunting service
TRANSLATION
Matter: Request for withdrawal of land(s) from the ACCA’s hunting grounds under Articles L.422-10 5° and L.422-14 of the Environment Code.
Attached documents: Cadastral maps and title deeds.
Date:
Mister President,
Articles L. 422-10 5° and L. 422-14 of the Environmental Code authorize us to request the withdrawal of our land from the ACCA (or AICA) and to prohibit hunting on our property because of our personal beliefs.
I therefore request that you begin the process of withdrawing the following ACCA lands from [TOWN]:
- [ADDRESS, CADASTRE NUMBERS, LAND REGISTRY PLANS and PROPERTY DEEDS for each parcel of land to be attached]
I declare on my honor that the above details cover my property in its entirety.
I also request that you remove my name from the membership list of ACCA by [TOWN].
This decision to withdraw being motivated by my commitment to the protection of nature, I undertake to prohibit all hunting and not to hunt myself on this territory.
I also agree to report my land as prohibited to hunters by installing signs indicating: “Hunting prohibited”.
I understand that as owner I am responsible for any damage that may be caused by game from my land.
(Only if your land is classified as an LPO Refuge) I would also like to inform you that this land is classified as a refuge by the League for the Protection of Birds, whose main objective is the preservation of wild fauna and flora.
I have taken note that the withdrawal of my lands will take effect from the next renewal of your ACCA/AICA. I therefore ask you to let me know the date of this renewal so that I know when my lands will cease to be part of the ACCA/AICA.
I hope you will agree and please accept, Mr President, the expression of my most respectful sentiments.
Signature
Final steps
After writing your letter, you should also send a copy to the president of your local ACCA, as well as the mayor and prefecture of your city.
Keep a dated copy of your letter in case you do not receive a response within the four month period.
If your land is removed from the list of authorized hunting grounds but you find that hunters are infringing the ban, you can contact the French Office for Biodiversity, the French Office for Biodiversity or the local gendarmerie.
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