Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish
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CONSULTATION PAPER FINAL DOCUMENT Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish Prepared for European Commission Directorate General E - Environment ENV.E.2. – Development and Environment Prepared by United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish – Consultation Paper ABOUT UNEP WORLD CONSERVATION MONITORING CENTRE The UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre is the biodiversity assessment and policy implementation arm of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the world’s foremost intergovernmental environmental organisation. UNEP-WCMC aims to help decision-makers recognise the value of biodiversity to people everywhere, and to apply this knowledge to all that they do. The Centre’s challenge is to transform complex data into policy-relevant information, to build tools and systems for analysis and integration, and to support the needs of nations and the international community as they engage in joint programmes of action. UNEP-WCMC provides objective, scientifically rigorous products and services that include ecosystem assessments, support for implementation of environmental agreements, regional and global biodiversity information, research on threats and impacts, and development of future scenarios for the living world. The first draft of this document was produced with contributions from the Marine Aquarium Council (MAC), which drafted the section on MAC certification; and the IUCN Freshwater Biodiversity Assessment Unit. Both organisations provided a review and general input to the document. Prepared for European Commission Directorate General E – Environment ENV.E.2. – Development and Environment by The United Nations Environment Programme - World Conservation Monitoring Centre 219 Huntingdon Road, Cambridge CB3 0DL, UK Tel: +44 (0) 1223 277314 Fax: +44 (0) 1223277136 Website: www.unep-wcmc.org © Copyright: European Commission, 2008. The contents of this report do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of UNEP, the European Commission, or contributory organisations. The designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expressions of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNEP, the European Commission or contributory organisations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or its authority, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish – Consultation Paper Table of Contents 1. Context ........................................................................................................................ 8 2. Introduction ................................................................................................................ 9 3. Objective and scope ................................................................................................. 10 4. Method ...................................................................................................................... 11 5. International trade monitoring .............................................................................. 12 5.1 Certification and Monitoring ..................................................................................................... 12 5.2 Monitoring through Wildlife Trade Legislation ..................................................................... 17 5.3 Customs legislation and monitoring ........................................................................................ 19 5.4 Veterinary legislation .................................................................................................................. 22 6. Discussion ................................................................................................................. 23 6.1 Strengths and weaknesses of the governmental instruments available to monitor trade in aquatic ornamentals ...................................................................................... 23 6.2 Strengths and weaknesses of the non-governmental instruments available to monitor trade in aquatic ornamentals ...................................................................................... 26 6.3 Effectiveness of the various instruments as international trade monitoring mechanisms .................................................................................................................................. 31 6.4 Possible impacts on livelihoods from the monitoring of international trade ..................... 33 6.5 Possible impacts on livelihoods from NOT monitoring of international trade .................. 35 7. Concluding remarks from consultees ................................................................... 35 8. Conclusions .............................................................................................................. 41 9. List of consultees ...................................................................................................... 44 10. Literature .................................................................................................................. 45 Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish – Consultation Paper EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The consultation process on the Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish was initiated on 13 June 2008 and closed for comment on 19 October 2008. It has taken the form of a Consultation Paper, alongside a document providing background information. The aim of the process was to assess the ability of governmental and non-governmental mechanisms to provide information appropriate for the monitoring of this trade at the species level and to produce recommendations with regards to suitable methods. The document and the consultation process focused on the international trade in ornamental fish entering the European Union. Three consecutive drafts of the Consultation Paper were circulated for feedback to 58 individuals and organisations, and all documents were made publicly available on the website 1 of the United Nations Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC). Responses were received from academic experts, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) authorities, trade associations, conservation organisations, hobbyists, and the Directorate General for Health and Consumer Affairs (DG-SANCO). In total, 15 participants provided input, including five combined responses from organisations such as Ornamental Fish International, the European Pet Organisation, Ecocean and the Zoological Society of London. Six monitoring mechanisms were considered in detail, namely statistics collected by: Customs and The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO); European Community (EC) veterinary controls 2; CITES listing; Annex D of the European Union Wildlife Trade Regulation 3; The Global Marine Aquarium Database (GMAD); and certification. Table 1. shows the key characteristics of each of these mechanisms. The debate arising from the Consultation indicated the following: Some consultees felt that due to the threats currently facing coral reefs, increased monitoring is necessary and desirable. Others agreed that current data are insufficient. Some consultees suggested that monitoring international trade was less effective than on-the-ground conservation because it does not consider mortality prior to export, collection methods, or domestic use, and it does not include stock and habitat assessments. Some consultees emphasised the importance that monitoring should be targeted to species of conservation concern. Although it was not contested that Annex D was a relatively comprehensive monitoring tool for species imported into the EC, several concerns were raised with regards to Annex D listing. The concerns included that it is focused only on trade into the EU, and that it does not consider domestic use and post-capture mortality. Concerns from industry representatives included a perceived lack of justification for this monitoring measure, a lack of consultation with range States, a lack of confidence in the SRG process, the administrative burden, duplication of effort with veterinary controls and the inclusion of captive-bred specimens. Industry representatives from Ornamental Fish International (OFI) and the European Pet Organisation (EPO) expressed support for trade monitoring via the data captured by veterinary controls. The forms used by EC veterinary controls 4 request species- level information and are already completed as a matter of course by importers. The support for monitoring by this mechanism was in a large part because it would minimise any additional administrative burden for the industry. However, a number 1 http://www.unep-wcmc.org/species/OrnamentalFishTrade.aspx 2 Decision 2006/656/EC 3 Council Regulation 338/97 4 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2006:271:0071:0080:EN:PDF Monitoring of International Trade in Ornamental Fish – Consultation Paper of practical issues would need to be resolved before this option could monitor trade at the species level. At present, although species names are recorded on hard copy forms, they are not collected or managed electronically. Furthermore, captive-bred specimens are not distinguished from wild-caught specimens. Some of the concerns raised about Annex D appear to be based on mistaken assumptions, for example: that it will lead to the closure of the European market and that permits are required. There