Overview

• Limburg said it will not appeal the county authority’s late-June refusal to grant an exemption, ending the planned capture-and-kill operation.
• The Lower Nature Conservation Authority denied the permit because applicants did not demonstrate “erhebliche gemeinwirtschaftliche Schäden” required for lethal control.
• Hesse’s environment ministry revoked a 2022 decree in March, restoring pigeons’ status as wild species and triggering the need for an exemption.
• A contractor had been selected and operations were slated to start on April 22, but no contract was awarded after the legal change.
• The city maintains pigeons at certain downtown hotspots are pests and criticizes higher-level rules, while noting two private objections have been filed.