Action needed to combat raccoon plague, Limburg province says

Tough action is needed to stop the spread of raccoons, which threaten to become a serious problem nationwide, officials in Limburg say.

The province is currently home to an estimated 100 to 200 raccoons and some 400 have been killed since 2019. Officials say that although their number is not increasing quickly at the moment, this will change if more efforts are not made to eradicate them from the region.

The province has a budget of €750,000 up to 2030 to combat their spread, including a hotline to report sightings and a professional team of hunters.

National government plans include the total eradication of the raccoon by 2027 and an end to the influx from Belgium and Germany. But Germany and Belgium need to do more to combat the spread of the mammal within their boundaries, provincial officials say.

“Not many people know there are over 1.5 million raccoons in Germany, and they can no longer get rid of them,” provincial councillor Léon Faassen told broadcaster NOS. “In Belgium there are tens of thousands. We are not that bad yet, but it is just a matter of time.”

Raccoons were brought to Europe 50 years ago for their fur and are also kept as pets. The Limburg population probably originated in Germany.