Person fined for disturbing sleeping polar bear in Svalbard
A person in Norway’s Arctic Svalbard region was fined 50,000 Norwegian kroner (about S$6,770) for using a ship’s horn to wake a sleeping polar bear.
The incident happened earlier in August in Lomfjorden, located in the Hinlopen Strait, when passengers aboard a vessel spotted a polar bear resting on land.
Polar bear moved after being disturbed
According to the Governor of Svalbard, one person on the vessel used the ship’s foghorn to wake the sleeping bear.
The sound caused the polar bear to wake up and move to another location.
Source: HuntedDuck on Canva, for illustration purposes only.
Other passengers on board reported the incident to authorities, who determined that the disturbance was intentional.
The individual accepted the penalty and has paid the fine.
Polar bears are protected in Svalbard
Svalbard is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean, located roughly halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole.
Source: Ole Berg-Rusten (NTB) via Adresseavisen
Approximately 300 polar bears remain in Svalbard year-round, per data from the Norwegian Polar Institute.
The polar bear has been a protected species in Svalbard since 1972.
It is against local regulations to distract, pursue, or attract a polar bear.
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86-year-old man in UK fined $430 after spitting out leaf that blew into his mouth during walk
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Featured image adapted from HuntedDuck on Canva, for illustration purposes only, and Ole Berg-Rusten (NTB) via Adresseavisen.
