Non-Wood Forest Products FORESTRY DEPARTMENT Working Document N° 7 THE ROLE OF CITES IN CONTROLLING THE INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN FOREST PRODUCTS IMPLICATIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT NON-WOOD FOREST PRODUCTS PROGRAMME THE ROLE OF CITES IN CONTROLLING THE INTERNATIONAL TRADE IN FOREST PRODUCTS IMPLICATIONS FOR SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT by Teresa Mulliken TRAFFIC International FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS Rome, 2009 The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. To receive copies of this document, please contact: Non-Wood News Forest Products and Industries Division FAO Viale delle Terme di Caracalla 00153 Rome Italy Email: [email protected] This document is available from the NWFP home page at: www.fao.org/forestry All comments and suggestions are welcomed. TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements................................................................................................................................iii Executive Summary................................................................................................................................v INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................................1 1. CITES BASICS—A GUIDE TO THE CONVENTION .................................................................3 Establishment and purpose of CITES................................................................................................3 Membership of CITES ......................................................................................................................3 How CITES works: the fundamentals...............................................................................................3 Administration and evolution of CITES............................................................................................5 2. EXPERIENCES WITH PROPOSALS TO LIST SPECIES IN THE CITES APPENDICES ....7 Inclusion of species in Appendix II...................................................................................................7 3. CITES PERCEPTIONS...................................................................................................................13 4. FOREST SPECIES INCLUDED IN THE CITES APPENDICES ..............................................17 Trade in CITES-listed plants...........................................................................................................17 Horticultural plants .........................................................................................................................19 Medicinal plants..............................................................................................................................20 Animal species ................................................................................................................................21 5. EXPERIENCES WITH CITES IMPLEMENTATION AND CHALLENGES WITH NON- COMPLIANCE ....................................................................................................................................23 Appendix I ......................................................................................................................................23 Appendix II .....................................................................................................................................28 Appendix III....................................................................................................................................37 General issues of compliance..........................................................................................................44 6. CITES IMPACTS ON FOREST PRODUCT TRADE, PRODUCTION AND CONSERVATION ...............................................................................................................................51 The challenge of assessing CITES impacts in isolation of other factors ........................................51 Impacts on trade patterns................................................................................................................52 Conservation impacts .....................................................................................................................56 Livelihood impacts .........................................................................................................................57 7. CITES AND THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION.............................................................61 Resolution of disputes.....................................................................................................................62 Observer status................................................................................................................................63 8. WHERE NEXT FOR CITES AND SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT?..................65 CITES and the trade in forest products ...........................................................................................65 Non-wood forest products trade ......................................................................................................66 CITES as a forum for stimulating discussion and action.................................................................66 CITES and the CBD........................................................................................................................67 CONCLUSIONS...................................................................................................................................69 REFERENCES .....................................................................................................................................71 ANNEX I ...............................................................................................................................................77 ANNEX II..............................................................................................................................................79 i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to the Forestry Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and specifically Christian Mersmann and Sven Walter, formerly of Forestry Department of FAO, for supporting the preparation of this report. Thanks are due to Steven Broad, Chen Hin Keong and Sabri Zain of TRAFFIC International, Ximena Buitrón, formerly of TRAFFIC South America, James Compton of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, Crawford Allan of TRAFFIC North America, Helen Corrigan, formerly of UNEP-WCMC, and Martin Jenkins for their assistance in providing information and for drafting and commenting on text. Thanks are also due to Dilys Roe of the International Institute for Environment and Development, previous collaboration with whom produced the impact analysis included in the section on CITES impacts on forest product trade, production and conservation, and to John Caldwell of UNEP-WCMC for assisting with provision of CITES annual report data. While recognizing their support, any errors of fact or interpretation remain my full responsibility. The views expressed in this report are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of TRAFFIC, IUCN – The World Conservation Union, FAO or WWF. Sincere thanks are extended to peer reviewers Cliona O’Brien, formerly of WWF Global Species Programme; Guido Broekhoven, Forest Governance Project, IUCN Asia Regional Office; Steven Johnson, International Tropical Timber Organization; Hiko Katsuhisa, formerly of Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; Chen Hin Keong, TRAFFIC International; Richard Tarasofsky, Energy, Environment and Development Programme, Chatham House. Teresa Mulliken TRAFFIC International iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Forests, and forest products, are fundamental to the health and well-being of the vast majority of the world’s human population. They play a critical role in the livelihoods of local communities in and around forests and are a source of food, medicines, construction materials, fuel, ornamentation and even companionship, for example in the case of pets. Technological innovation, and specifically improvements in the global transport infrastructure, combined with human migration have served to increase the use and availability of forest products around the world. However, this use is not without a cost – the populations of many wild species have declined as a result of harvest for international trade, some to the point that entire species are threatened with extinction. In order to address international trade threats to wild species, governments established the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). CITES entered into force in 1975, and has over 160 member governments (Parties). This report explores the role and impact of CITES on the trade in forest products and sustainable forest management throughout its 30-year history, with an emphasis on plant, and specifically