• Cím: 3304 Eger, Sánc u. 6.
  • Tel: 36/411-581 Fax: 36/412-791
  • Email: titkarsag@bnpi.hu

Ranger service

Ranger Service

National legislation introduced the Ranger Service over 30 years ago, however, their legal status, duties, responsibilities and rights have undergone significant changes during these decades. The modern term of a ranger refers to rangers employed both by state and local municipalities.

Each national park directorate employ rangers who participate in law enforcement, thus they are equipped with uniform, a service licence and badge, handgun and other technical equipment. Besides that local municipalities can also employ rangers to safeguard locally protected areas. In addition, every day citizens can support the Ranger Service as volunteers in the framework of the Civil Ranger Programme.

There are ten national park directorates in Hungary, functioning as the regional bodies of state nature conservation. Their names derive from the particular national park that can be found in their operational area. In this operational area they are responsible for:

-          the national park, the protected landscape areas, and protected areas

-          all natural monuments outside protected areas.

Also they are responsible and have the authority to: 

-          control and monitor that nature conservation measures work effectively and are not violated

-          interfere with any misconduct that endangers or damages nature and protected natural asset or area, and generally the interest of nature conservation. In such cases the ranger is entitled to intercept and check the identity of the person and/or vehicle, as well as search the vehicle and/or baggage or load.

-          check hunters and anglers

-          confiscate any tool or equipment that is used for threatening and damaging the natural asset

-          restrain  and arrest the person committing the crime of damaging nature, if the person is caught in the act

-          use coercion (duress, handcuff, incapacitant spray, service dog, gun - the latter only in the case of self-defence) if law enforcement meets resistance

-          initiate proceeding (be it infringement or crime), and also to fine on the spot

There are 261 park rangers as of today.

The green ranger uniform is regulated by legislation and consists of the following:

-          Sleeve badge

-          National park directorate ID

-          Rank badge

-          Cap badge

The Ranger Service is supervised by the Ministry of Rural Development.

Utolsó módosítás: 2014. február 18., 15:26