Sparks may fly at next CITES meeting(CoP 15)

[Guest guest]

Few surprises in latest CITES Proposals, but sparks may fly

 

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*Gland, Switzerland, 26 October 2009*—the Secretariat of CITES (the

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and

Flora) has today revealed most of the list of just over 40 proposed changes

in CITES trade rules that will be discussed along with a range of other

policy and implementation issues at the forthcoming Conference of the

Parties taking place next March in Qatar (CoP15).

 

CITES CoP meetings occur every three years and changes to trade rules,

through amendments to the CITES Appendices can have profound conservation

implications for affected species. The listing of a species in Appendix I

effectively prevents all commercial international trade, while those listed

in Appendix II can be traded under special permit conditions.

 

Proposals for the CoP15 include species familiar in CITES debate, like the

African Elephant, some that were rejected at the previous meeting (CoP14) in

The Hague, Netherlands in June 2008 and a number of new issues for

consideration by member countries.

 

Sure to be controversial is a proposal by Kenya, supported by several other

African governments, that they hope would block any attempts by other

countries to gain CITES endorsement of further legal ivory sales before at

least 2028. The same proposal also aims to put an end to the currently

approved legal export of carved ivory items from Namibia and Zimbabwe by

tourists.

 

In conflict with this proposal are requests from Zambia and Tanzania to

transfer their African Elephant populations from Appendix I to Appendix II

in order to allow one-off sale of government-owned ivory stockpiles.

 

“The conflicting aims of the Kenyan-led and Tanzania / Zambia proposals are

certain to create tension and deep divisions,” said Steven Broad, Executive of TRAFFIC International. “We hope that a satisfactory conclusion

can be reached that serves the best interests of conservation and that the

discussion does not detract from the key problems causing the poaching of

elephants, such as the lack of control over illegal domestic ivory markets.”

 

 

Also likely to be controversial are proposals to list several marine species

in the Appendices.

 

Top of the list will be Atlantic Bluefin Tuna. Monaco is proposing an

Appendix I listing, putting a stop to further commercial trade. The issue

has already caused controversy within the European Union, with France’s

President Nicolas Sarkozy publicly announcing his support for a commercial

fishing ban, but his government then opposing it during a close vote that

saw European Union Member States fail to reach the necessary majority to

support Monaco’s proposed ban.

 

Sharks too are sure to cause a stir. At the previous CoP meeting, proposals

to list Porbeagle and Spiny Dogfishes in the Appendices were narrowly

defeated following strong lobbying by the fishery industry and deep

divisions between the CITES Secretariat and the United Nations’ Food and

Agriculture Organization about criteria for deciding in what circumstances

CITES should play a role in regulating trade in marine species. Both species

are once more being proposed for Appendix II listing. The US is also

proposing listing a further six shark species, including three hammerheads

in Appendix II.

 

“We can only hope that discussion of these proposals is focused on the

critical issues they involve in terms of conservation and international

fisheries management,” commented Broad.

 

“CITES has a key role to play in complementing other conservation and

management measures—at national and international levels—for commercially

important marine resources.”

 

“The failure to list Spiny Dogfish and Porbeagle Sharks in 2007 was

especially disappointing, but this time we hope that conservation arguments

will prevail over institutional politics and that CITES member countries

will cut through the rhetoric and look at the hard facts of the problems

facing the future of these fisheries if they fail to act now.”

 

In a similar category are corals, used principally for making jewellery,

which were initially accepted for inclusion in Appendix II in June 2007 only

for the decision to be narrowly overturned in plenary.

 

Several Proposals relate to reptiles and amphibians, such as one to downlist

certain populations of Nile Crocodile to Appendix II, to reflect the

improved conservation status of this species. By contrast, Kaiser’s Spotted

Newt has been put forward for Appendix II listing, because of concerns over

its levels in trade, as has the Ornate Dabb Lizard, which Israel has

proposed is listed in Appendix I, to end its commercial international trade.

 

 

The majority of proposals relating to plants concerns Malagasy species being

put forward for Appendix II listing.

 

Brazil is also proposing an Endangered species of Rosewood tree—*Aniba

rosaeodora*—is listed in Appendix II. The species has seriously declined

because of over-exploitation for rosewood oil extraction.

 

TRAFFIC and programme partner IUCN will undertake full analyses of each of

the proposals, to investigate whether they meet the appropriate biological

and other criteria. Based on these analyses, TRAFFIC will be preparing its

Recommendations on Proposals to Amend the Appendices, which will be made

available prior to the Meeting.

 

This will be the first CITES CoP to be held in the Middle East, and TRAFFIC

hopes that an additional outcome of the meeting will be greater attention to

the need for enhanced regional enforcement co-operation in the region.

 

The proposals are not the only items on the CoP meeting agenda. There will

also be important discussions based on documents submitted in advance of the

meeting relating to Tigers, elephants, rhinos and species like the Humphead

Wrasse.

 

*ENDS*

 

*For further information*

*Richard Thomas*, TRAFFIC International, tel: +44 (0) 1223 279068, e-mail:

richard.

 

*NOTE*

For a list of CoP15 proposals, please visit the CITES Secretariat website at

http://www.cites.org/eng/cop/15/raw_props.shtml

 

Monday, October 26, 2009 at 12:40