On 15 March, the Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Yerlan Nysanbayev held a meeting in the West Kazakhstan Region with the teaching staff of the Zhangir Khan Agrarian and Technical University and farmers from the Bokeyorda, Zhangaly, Zhanibek, Akzhaik, and Kaztalov districts.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Ecology, at the meeting farmers demanded measures to regulate the saiga antelope population.
"We focused in more detail on the damage caused by saigas to agriculture, the trampling of grass, soil erosion, and the use of corral methods and night-time shooting. During the discussion, farmers proposed reviewing the methodology for calculating losses incurred, and restarting the entire process from capture to sale in retail outlets", the statement said.
According to the minister, last year the small number of so-called 'removals' was due to unfavourable conditions, the limited capacity of meat processing plants, and the absence of any hunting of the steppe antelope, which had not been carried out for over 25 years.
At the end of the meeting, farmers proposed considering the introduction of amateur hunting for saigas, subject to the MPL (maximum permissible limit).
It will be recalled that earlier, the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources decided to temporarily suspend the 'regulation of the saiga population'. However, the head of the department, Yerlan Nysanbayev, later reported that the introduction of amateur hunting for the steppe antelope is planned for autumn this year.
It is worth noting that shortly before this, the minister stated that any hunting of saigas would be illegal, and that removal activities would resume only in 2025.