Tourist fined £900 for disturbing walrus in Norway | EUROtoday

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A vacationer has been fined £900 for getting too near a walrus in Norway.

Members of the general public alerted the native authorities within the Norwegian Arctic archipelago of Svalbard after they noticed a person going onto an ice floe to strategy the animal. It is believed he was making an attempt to get a photograph of the animal.

Under native regulation, it’s unlawful to trigger pointless disturbance to wildlife in Svalberg, which lies midway between the northern coast of mainland Norway and the North Pole.

The Svalbard Environment Act protects towards disturbing polar bears, seals, whales, reindeer and arctic foxes, in addition to walruses.

The man, believed to be from Poland, was taken to the governor’s workplace after the incident and fined 12,500 Norwegian Kroner, roughly equal to £900.

“The governor encourages everyone to keep a good distance from walruses so that they are not disturbed and so that no danger to people occurs,” the governor’s workplace stated in an announcement.

Police prosecutor Magnus Rindal Fredriksen stated the incident occurred “very close to Longyearbyen, at the bottom of the fjord”. He stated the vacationer had arrived within the space on the identical day.

Walruses in Svalbard turned protected in 1952 after heavy business exploitation over the earlier three centuries had diminished the native inhabitants to just some hundred.

Since the measures had been launched, the inhabitants of walruses has grown steadily however it stays on the Norwegian National Red List.

The Norwegian authorities has introduced harder laws over considerations with the impression of tourism and local weather change because of come into place subsequent 12 months. They embrace a ban on getting inside 150 metres of a walrus. Other measures embrace a cap on cruise ships and designated touchdown websites.

Svalbard is in style with vacationers throughout spring and summer time because the solar doesn’t set at night time within the excessive Arctic throughout what is called “midnight sun”.