10 most recent changed pages in 'International agreements explained' section.

EU Regulation 338/97

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 13:19:46 +0100

The European Union Wildlife Trade Regulation, Council Regulation (EC) No. 338/97 came into effect on 1 June 1997. The aim of the Regulation is to protect wild animals and plants currently or likely to become threatened by international trade, by regulating the trade in these species. It enforces CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) within the EU and provides additional measures for the conservation of species in trade. In full, the Regulation reads 'Council Regulation (EC) No 338/97 of 9 December 1996 on the protection of species of wild fauna and flora by regulating trade therein'.

Subsequent regulations have been produced that correct, implement or amend Council Regulation (EC) No. 338/97. Whenever the list of species listed in the Annexes to Council Regulation (EC) No. 338/97 changes this is done through a Commission amending Regulation.

The main difference between this Regulation and CITES is that it contains 4 annexes instead of the 3 appendices of CITES. These annexes represent the following:

Annex A includes:

All CITES Appendix I species, except where an EU Member State has entered a reservation
Some CITES Appendix II and III species, for which the EU has adopted stricter domestic measures
Some non-CITES species

Annex B includes:

All other CITES Appendix II species, except where an EU Member State has entered a reservation
Some CITES Appendix III species · Some non-CITES species

Annex C includes:

All other CITES Appendix III species, except where an EU Member State has entered a reservation

Annex D includes:

Some CITES Appendix III species for which the EU holds a reservation
Some non-CITES species

The relevance of this Regulation for the Large Herbivore Initiative is the same as explained for CITES.

EU Habitat Directive

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 13:36:03 +0100

In full this Directive reads 'Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora'. This Directive aims for the maintenance of biodiversity within the territory of the member states to which this treaty applies, which are all the member states of the European Union. This is done through the conservation of natural habitats and of wild flora and fauna. All measures taken pursuant to the EU Habitat Directive are designed to restore or maintain natural habitats and species of wild flora and fauna of EU interest. Economic, social and cultural requirements are taken into account, as well as regional and local characteristics.

For this purpose, six different appendices have been created: ·

Annex I: natural habitat types of community interest whose conservation requires the designation of special areas of conservation
Annex II: animal and plant species community interest whose conservation requires the designation of special areas of conservation
Annex III: criteria for selecting sites eligible for identification as sites of community importance and designation of special areas of conservation
Annex IV: animal and plant species of community interest in need of strict protection
Annex V: animal and plant species of community interest whose taking in the wild and exploitation may be subject to management measures
Annex VI: prohibited methods and means of capture and killing and modes of transport

A specific outcome of the Directive is the planned establishment of the European ecological network known as 'Natura 2000'. Member States of the EU are obliged to draw up a list of sites with habitat types mentioned in annex I and species mentioned in annex II that are native to its territory. Criteria for selecting sites to include in annex are found in annex III. Member States have to develop conservation measures to avoid deterioration of the mentioned sites. In circumstances of overriding public interest a site may be adversely affected, but compensation measures have to be taken. Furthermore Member States must establish a system of protection to conserve the listed species. The species which are of community interest and therefore in need of strict protection are mentioned in annex IV. Some species which may already be subject to management measures (annex V). Annex VI finally gives the prohibited methods and means of capture, killing and transport. More information and the exact text of the Directive can be found on the WebPages of the European Union: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/nature_conservation /eu_nature_legislation/habitats_directive/index_en.htm.

The relevance of this Directive is clear in that it aims at conserving habitats for among others large herbivore species. However, the Directive is only relevant for the territory of the Member States of the European Union and therefore not relevant for all species in this report. The status of most of the species in the European Union range is generally relatively well. They are not immediately threatened with extinction.

Main strength of the Directive lies in the fact that it stimulates the reduction of habitat fragmentation, which is a problem for most large herbivores in the territory of the EU. This results in relatively weak local populations or on the contrary overpopulation (e.g. Red Deer, Roe Deer, Chamois).

Large herbivore species could be good model species to develop ecological network orientated projects. Besides the already started projects of the LHF, other projects can be developed to improve connections between fragmented habitats. Not only large herbivores benefit from this, also other animal species.

Bonn Convention

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 13:29:54 +0100

The objective of the convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species and Wild Animals (also known as the Bonn convention or CMS) is the conservation of wild animals throughout their range, with the emphasis on terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species. Migratory species are defined by the CMS as "the entire population or any geographically separate part of the population of any species or lower taxon of wild animals a significant proportion of whose members cyclically and predictably cross one or more national jurisdictional boundaries". The CMS or Bonn Convention was signed in 1979 in Bonn and entered into force on 1 November 1983. As of 1 January 2007 it includes 101 parties form Africa, Central and South America, Asia and Oceania. The full list of Parties is given in Appendix 5 of this report. More information can be found on the webpages of the Bonn convention: http://www.cms.int/about/index.htm.

The Bonn convention has adopted two appendices, as described below:

Appendix I: Endangered migratory species

Migratory species that have been categorized as being in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant proportion of their range are listed on Appendix I of the Convention. States strive towards strictly protecting these animals, conserving or restoring the habitats in which they live, mitigating obstacles to migration and controlling other factors that might endanger them.
Additional migratory species can be listed on Appendix I if a Party considers that they are endangered, and submits a proposal, which meets the requirements of Resolution 1.5 (Bonn, 1985). Upon the recommendation of the Scientific Council, the Conference of the Parties (COP) would then decide whether to adopt the proposed in accordance with Art. XI.
Migratory species can be removed from Appendix I when the Conference of the Parties (COP) determines that there is either reliable evidence, including the best scientific evidence available, that the species is no longer endangered and that it is not likely to become endangered again.

Appendix II: Migratory species conserved through Agreements

Migratory species that have an unfavourable conservation status or would benefit significantly from international co-operation organised by tailored agreements are listed in Appendix II to the Convention. For this reason, the Convention encourages the Range States to conclude global or regional Agreements for the conservation and management of individual species or, more often, of a group of species listed on Appendix II. In this respect, CMS acts as a framework convention from which independent instruments evolve.

The Agreements may range from legally binding treaties to less formal instruments, such as Memoranda of Understanding, and can be adapted to the requirements of particular regions. The development of models tailored according to the conservation needs throughout the migratory range is a unique capacity of CMS. Such agreements have the great advantage that the Range States themselves decide on a tailored and structured action plan that includes the organization of joint research, monitoring activities and harmonisation of legislation.

The number of countries that signed the agreements of this convention has grown reasonably over the last years. Several countries that are of interest to the Large Herbivore Network (because certain threatened herbivore species habitat those countries) are added to the list of Parties (e.g. Kazakhstan and Belarus). Because of this expansion of the Geographical Perspective of this Convention, the number of herbivore species that are listed in the appendices of the CMS has grown as well, and now includes among others several wild equid species such as the Onager and the Kulan, as well as the Saiga antelope.

Bern Convention

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 13:24:06 +0100

The Convention on the conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (in short 'Bern Convention') was adopted on 19 September 1979 in Bern and came into force on 1 June 1982. The aims of this convention are to conserve wild flora and fauna and their natural habitats, especially those species and habitats whose conservation requires the co-operation of several States, and to promote such co-operation. Particular emphasis is given to endangered and vulnerable species, including endangered and vulnerable migratory species.

The Convention lists protected species on four Appendices:

Appendix I: strictly protected flora species,
Appendix II: strictly protected fauna species,
Appendix III: protected fauna species, and
Appendix IV: prohibited means and methods of killing, capture and other forms of exploitation.

Each contracting Party is obliged to take appropriate and necessary legislative and administrative measures to ensure the special protection of the wild fauna species specified in Appendices II and III. Any exceptions that are made regarding these measures need to be reported to the Standing Committee every two years. More information and the whole text of the Convention can be found on the WebPages of the Council of Europe: http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/EN/Treaties/Html/104.htm.

The number of Contracting Parties to this Convention is limited and is generally restricted to the members of the Council of Europe. For this reason, the majority of the species that are of importance to the LHF are not covered by the Bern Convention.

Of special value for the the large Herbivore Foundation is article 11 paragraph 2a of the Convention stating: 'Each Contracting Party undertakes to encourage the reintroduction of native species of wild flora and fauna when this would contribute to the conservation of an endangered species, provided that a study is first made in the light of the experiences of other Contracting Parties to establish that such reintroduction would be effective and acceptable.'

This paragraph encourages the reintroduction of large herbivore species into their former range, like the European Bison, the Elk and the Onager (Cromsigt, 2000).

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 11:52:59 +0100

Introduction

In order to draw attention to taxa that are threatened with extinction and promote their conservation, the Species Survival Commission (SSC) of the World Conservation Union (IUCN) has been assessing the conservation status of species, subspecies, varieties and even subpopulations on a global scale, for more than four decades now.

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the product of this work, and is compiled by the 7,000 species experts from the SSC network in co-operation with partner organizations, being BirdLife International, the Center for Applied Biodiversity Science (CABS) at Conservation International (CI), NatureServe, and the Institute of Zoology at the Zoological Society of London.

The IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria have several specific aims, which are, as described on the IUCN Red List website: ·

to provide a system that can be applied consistently by different people; ·
to improve objectivity by providing users with clear guidance on how to evaluate different factors which affect the risk of extinction; ·
to provide a system which will facilitate comparisons across widely different taxa; ·
to give people using threatened species lists a better understanding of how individual species were classified.

The IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria are intended to be an easily and widely understood system for classifying species at high risk of global extinction. The general aim of the system is to provide an explicit, objective framework for the classification of the broadest range of species according to their extinction risk. However, while the Red List may focus attention on those taxa at the highest risk, it is not the sole means of setting priorities for conservation measures for their protection.

The status of the species described in the Red List is indicated by 9 different categories:

Extinct (EX),
Extinct in the Wild (EW),
Critically Endangered (CR),
Endangered (EN),
Vulnerable (VU),
Near threatened (NT),
Least Concern (LC),
Data Deficient (DD) and
Not Evaluated (NE).

Classification into the categories for species that are threatened with extinction (Vulnerable, Endangered, and Critically Endangered) is based on a set of a number of selective criteria, being:

rate of decline,
population size,
area of geographic distribution, and
degree of population and distribution fragmentation.

The IUCN Red List data is analyzed periodically and the results are published once every four years. The last update, the one used for this report, dates from 2004. The next major analysis is due to be published in 2008. More information regarding the IUCN Red List can be found on the IUCN Red list page: http://www.iucnredlist.org.

The IUCN can be very valuable for the Large Herbivore Foundation, mainly in the sense that it can serve as a reliable source of information on the biology and current conservation status of species. This regards information provided by the IUCN Red List itself as well as the knowledge that is provided by the Species Specialist Groups, either through their Status Plans and Action Surveys or directly by means of contact with any of their species experts.

IUCN Categories and Criteria :

Extinct (EX)
A taxon is Extinct when there is no reasonable doubt that the last individual has died. A taxon is presumed Extinct when exhaustive surveys in known and/or expected habitat, at appropriate times (diurnal, seasonal, annual), throughout its historic range have failed to record an individual. Surveys should be over a time frame appropriate to the taxon's life cycle and life form.
Extinct in wild (EW)
A taxon is Extinct in the Wild when it is known only to survive in cultivation, in captivity or as a naturalized population (or populations) well outside the past range. A taxon is presumed Extinct in the wild when exhaustive surveys in known and/or expected habitat, at appropriate times (diurnal, seasonal, annual), throughout its historic range have failed to record an individual. Surveys should be over a time frame appropriate to the taxon's life cycle and life form.
Critically endangered (CR)
A taxon is Critically Endangered when the best available evidence indicates that it meets any of the criteria A to E for Critically Endangered (see Section V), and it is therefore considered to be facing an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild.
Endangered (EN)
A taxon is Endangered when the best available evidence indicates that it meets any of the criteria A to E for Endangered (see Section V), and it is therefore considered to be facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild.
Vulnerable (VU)
A taxon is Vulnerable when the best available evidence indicates that it meets any of the criteria A to E for Vulnerable (see Section V), and it is therefore considered to be facing a high risk of extinction in the wild.
Near threatened (NT)
A taxon is Near Threatened when it has been evaluated against the criteria but does not qualify for Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable now, but is close to qualifying for or is likely to qualify for a threatened category in the near future.
Least concern (LC)
A taxon is Least Concern when it has been evaluated against the criteria and does not qualify for Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable or Near Threatened. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category.
Data deficient (DD)
A taxon is Data Deficient when there is inadequate information to make a direct, or indirect, assessment of its risk of extinction based on its distribution and/or population status. A taxon in this category may be well studied, and its biology well known, but appropriate data on abundance and/or distribution are lacking. Data Deficient is therefore not a category of threat. Listing of taxa in this category indicates that more information is required and acknowledges the possibility that future research will show that threatened classification is appropriate. It is important to make positive use of whatever data are available. In many cases great care should be exercised in choosing between DD and a threatened status. If the range of a taxon is suspected to be relatively circumscribed, and a considerable period of time has elapsed since the last record of the taxon, threatened status may well be justified.
Not evaluated (NE)
A taxon is Not Evaluated when it is has not yet been evaluated against the criteria.

CITES

Tue, 05 Jan 2010 12:41:17 +0100

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) was adopted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of IUCN members.

On 3 March 1973 CITES was signed at a meeting of representatives of 80 countries in Washington, D.C., United States of America and it entered in force on 1 July 1975. CITES is an international and worldwide agreement between governments and is joined by countries voluntarily. Although it is legally binding on the Parties involved, it does not replace national laws. Each party has to adapt its own legislation to implement CITES.

International wildlife trade is worth billions of dollars annually and includes hundreds of millions of specimens. To avoid overexploitation, it is recognized that international co-operation is needed. The aim of CITES is not as to abolish international trade in flora and fauna completely but works with the sole purpose of regulating the trade, to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival. Since it only concentrates on international trade it does not concern any local affairs with respect to the trade of animal and plant species. Each joined Party designates at least one Management Authority (MA) that administers a licensing system. That MA is advised by at least one Scientific Authority (SA) that advises them on the status of the species and the effects of trade on the status. This control is embodied by three appendices (I, II and III). Species in these appendices are subjected to different degrees of control, as described at the website: http://www.cites.org/eng/disc/how.shtml; and quoted below:

Appendix I: species threatened with extinction.

Trade in specimens of these species is permitted only in exceptional circumstances An import permit issued by the Management Authority of the State of import is required. This may be issued only if the specimen is not to be used for primarily commercial purposes and if the import will be for purposes that are not detrimental to the survival of the species. In the case of a live animal or plant, the Scientific Authority must be satisfied that the proposed recipient is suitably equipped to house and care for it.
An export permit or re-export certificate issued by the Management Authority of the state of export or re-export is also required. An export permit may be issued only if the specimen was legally obtained; the trade will not be detrimental to the survival of the species; and an import permit has already been issued.
A re-export certificate may be issued only if the specimen was imported in accordance with the provisions of the Convention and, in the case of a live animal or plant, if an import permit has been issued. In the case of a live animal or plant, it must be prepared and shipped to minimize any risk of injury, damage to health or cruel treatment.

Appendix II: species not necessarily threatened with extinction, but in which trade must be controlled in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their survival.

An export permit or re-export certificate issued by the Management Authority of the State of export or re-export is required. An export permit may be issued only if the specimen was legally obtained and if the export will not be detrimental to the survival of the species.
A re-export certificate may be issued only if the specimen was imported in accordance with the Convention. In the case of a live animal or plant, it must be prepared and shipped to minimize any risk of injury, damage to health or cruel treatment.
No import permit is needed unless required by national law.

Appendix III: species that are protected in at least one country, which has asked other CITES Parties for assistance in controlling the trade.

In the case of trade from a State that included the species in Appendix III, an export permit issued by the Management Authority of that State is required. This may be issued only if the specimen was legally obtained and, in the case of a live animal or plant, if it will be prepared and shipped to minimize any risk of injury, damage to health or cruel treatment.
In the case of export from any other State, a certificate of origin issued by its Management Authority is required.
In the case of re-export, a re-export certificate issued by the State of re-export is required.
In its Article VII, the Convention allows or requires Parties to make certain exceptions to the general principles described above.

For more detailed information, see the WebPages of the Convention: www.cites.org.

CITES is relevant for the Large Herbivore Foundation in particular regarding species that are threatened by international trade. This concerns two species in particular; the Saiga Antelope, and the Musk Deer. The Saiga Antelope suffers from heavy poaching, mainly for meat and horns that is used for Chinese traditional medicinal purposes.

The second example, the Musk Deer, still suffers from a steady decline in Mongolia, mainly due to poverty induced poaching for Musk. Strict international control in the trade of musk is still needed to secure the survival of this species.

The trophy hunting business is also a point of interest for both the LHF and CITES. Several species of the foundation are wanted trophy species and CITES can help to control this business. Because of the economic potential of trophy hunting, it should be used as a way to promote conservation. In this respect, CITES should be presented as a control measure and not as an anti-hunt Convention. (Cromsigt, 2000)