Wildlife hunting law changes in the face of bear crisis

Last week I wrote about the opening of hunting season. While researching that post, I came across several articles about amendments to Japan's wildlife laws in response to the ongoing bear crisis. In September 2025, Japan amended its wildlife law to allow for "emergency hunting" of bears by licensed hunters commissioned by municipalities. Later, they expanded the rules to permit police officers to kill bears with rifles. 

As you may have seen on the national news and in several blog posts on City-cost, the number of bear sightings and attacks have increased significantly in 2025. Moreover, according to the Environment Ministry, the number of deaths caused by bears has reached a record high. As of November 5th 2025 there have been thirteen deaths from bear attacks since April 2025.

The changes to the wildlife hunting laws were made in a hope to reduce the number of bears coming in to populated areas. However, implementation has faced several challenges, including a shortage of skilled hunters. The revisions include a provision that if there is not enough time to wait for the local authorities to approve an emergency shooting by a hunter, police officers are permitted to kill bears. 

Some people are voicing concerns about such things as the safety of shootings, the legal implications of the amendments, as well as animal right concerns. But something needed to be done as the situation is greatly affecting every day life and bears do pose a real, serious threat to human life.