[MPWG] 2010 Meeting of CITES - Items pertaining to flora on the provisional agenda - Public Comment ends January 4, 2010

[Patricia_DeAngelis at fws.gov]

COP15: The fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP15) to 
CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) is 
scheduled to be held in Doha, Qatar, March 13-25, 2010. 

For an overview of CITES, see "CITES in a nutshell," below. 
On November 4, 2009, the United States published a Federal Register notice 
(http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/pdf/E9-26619.pdf) to announce a public 
meeting and request public comments on the provisional agenda for the 
upcoming meeting. 

Agenda Items Pertaining to Plants: The main agenda is located at: 
http://www.cites.org/eng/cop/15/doc/index.shtml 

There are several documents on the provisional agenda that impact flora, 
particularly under Strategic Matters and Interpretation and 
Implementation. 
There are also more than 20 species proposals to amend plant listings 
(Agenda Item 68, under Amendment of the Appendices). 
Eventually, all species proposals will be translated into all 3 working 
languages of CITES. For now, you can see the proposals as they were 
submitted by Parties, at:http://www.cites.org/eng/cop/15/raw_props.shtml

COMMENTS: In developing the U.S. negotiating positions on proposed 
resolutions, decisions, species proposals, and on agenda items submitted 
by other Party countries and the CITES Secretariat for consideration at 
CoP15, the United States will consider written information submitted by 
the public received by January 4, 2010. 

Comments pertaining to proposed resolutions, decisions, and/or agenda 
items should be sent to the Division of Management Authority, U.S. Fish 
and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax Drive, Room 212, Arlington, VA 
22203, or via e-mail at: cop15 at fws.gov. 
Comments pertaining to species proposals should be sent to the Division of 
Scientific Authority, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 4401 North Fairfax 
Drive, Room 110, Arlington, VA 22203, or via e-mail at: 
scientificauthority at fws.gov. 
Comments and materials received will be available for public inspection, 
by appointment, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, at either 
the Division of Management Authority or the Division of Scientific 
Authority.

PUBLIC MEETING:  The public meeting will be held on December 2, 2009, at 
1:30 p.m.
The public meeting will be held in the Sidney Yates Auditorium at the 
Department of the Interior at 18th and C Streets, NW, Washington, DC.
Directions to the building can be obtained by contacting the Division of 
Management Authority

Please feel free to share this message with others that might take an 
interest in these issues.

Thank you,
Patricia

Patricia S. De Angelis, Ph.D.
Botanist - Division of Scientific Authority
Chair - Plant Conservation Alliance - Medicinal Plant Working Group
US Fish & Wildlife Service
4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 110
Arlington, VA  22203
703-358-1708 x1753
FAX: 703-358-2276

Promoting sustainable use and conservation of our native medicinal plants.
<www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal>


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CITES in a nutshell*

WHAT IS CITES?
>>CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species 
that entered into force in 1975.

This aim of the Convention is to ensure that international trade of 
CITES-listed animal and plant species is not detrimental to the survival 
of wild populations.  This is accomplished through a system of permits. 
The CITES web address is: <www.cites.org>.

WHAT ABOUT THE PARTIES...
>>There are currently 175 Parties (member countries ) to CITES.  For a 
list of the Parties, see: <www.cites.org/eng/disc/parties/index.shtml>.

In the United States, CITES is administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service in coordination other agencies, such as the National Marine 
Fisheries Service and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.  For more 
information, see: <www.fws.gov/international/DMA_DSA/CITES/CITES_home.html
>.

The CITES world is divided into six regions: Africa, Asia, Central and 
South America and the Caribbean, Europe, North American, and Oceania.  The
United States is part of the North American Region, which also includes 
Canada and Mexico.  See <www.cites.org/eng/disc/AC_PC.shtml#dir>.

WHAT ABOUT THE MEETINGS...
>>CITES convenes several international meetings in order to execute the 
treaty, including:

The Conference of the Parties (CoP) - Until CoP13, these meeting were held 
every two years.  The time between CoPs has been changed to every three 
years.  Decisions, Resolutions and species listings are discussed and 
voted on at CoPs.  Representatives from all 175 Parties may participate in 
this meeting.  The next CoP, CoP15, is tentatively scheduled to be held in 
Doha, Qatar, March 13-25, 2010.  Proceedings or summary records are 
available online going back to 1992.
see <www.cites.org/eng/cop/index.shtml>

The Plants Committee - Held annually to discuss Resolutions and species 
listings pertaining to plants. This meeting is attended by representatives 
from each region represented in CITES. Currently, the United States is the 
North American regional representative, with Canada as the alternate.  The 
last PC, PC18, was held in March 2009.  Proceedings or summary records are 
available online going back to 1999.
see <www.cites.org/eng/com/PC/member.shtml>

The Animals Committee - Held annually to discuss Resolutions and species 
listings pertaining to animals. This meeting is attended by 
representatives from each region represented in CITES. Currently, Mexico 
is the North American regional representative, and the United States is 
the alternate.  The last AC, AC24, was held in April 2009.  Proceedings or 
summary records are available online going back to 1995.
see: <www.cites.org/eng/com/AC/member.shtml>

The Standing Committee - Meetings are held as needed, usually once a year 
and before and after every CoP.  The Standing Committee provides policy 
guidance on the implementation of the Convention, among other things. 
Currently, Canada is the North American regional representative, and 
Mexico is the alternate.  The last SC, SC58, was held in July 2009. 
Proceedings or summary records are available online going back to 1992.
see: <www.cites.org/eng/com/SC/member.shtml>

CAN I ATTEND THESE MEETINGS?
>>National and international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) may 
become an observers to a CITES meeting.  Observers at a CoP may attend all 
plenary and committee sessions, and comment in these sessions on any of 
the issues. However, they are not permitted to vote on proposals. 

For observers from the United States, the U.S. Government?s delegation 
provides daily briefings at each COP for U.S. observers.  U.S.-based NGOs 
may apply to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to become an observer. For 
more information, see: <www.fws.gov/international/DMA_DSA/CITES/pdf/ob.pdf
>.

WHAT SPECIES ARE REGULATED BY CITES?
>>Under CITES, species may be listed on one of 3 appendices, each 
conferring a different level of regulation, with the most stringent
controls for Appendix I species.  For more on the CITES appendices, see: <
www.cites.org/eng/disc/how.shtml>.

Species listed on Appendix I are threatened with extinction and trade is 
permitted only under strict circumstances. 

Species listed on Appendix II are impacted by trade at a level that 
requires monitoring in order to avoid threats to extinction.  For more 
information, see: 
<www.fws.gov/international/DMA_DSA/CITES/pdf/appIIsustainableuse.pdf>. 

Appendix III listings essentially provides a monitoring system that allows 
countries to enlist assistance of international trading partners to better
understand the level of trade in those species.  For more information, 
see: <www.fws.gov/international/DMA_DSA/CITES/pdf/apndxiii.pdf> and how 
the FWS implements Appendix III, see: <
www.fws.gov/international/DMA_DSA/CITES/Appendix_III/overview.html>

HOW MANY CITES-SPECIES ARE THERE?
>>There are more than 5,000 animal species and 29,000 plant species listed 
in the CITES Appendices; see <www.cites.org/eng/disc/species.shtml>

Currently, there are 388 plants and 694 animals native to the United 
States listed in the CITES Appendices.  This does not include the plants 
and animals native to American Samoa, the Guam, the Northern Mariana 
Islands, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands.  Listed plant species 
include venus flytrap and the saguaro (and all native cacti), along with 
several U.S.-native medicinal plants such as goldenseal and American 
ginseng.

HOW DO I FIND OUT WHAT IS LISTED IN THE APPENDICES TO CITES?
>>To find out more about CITES-listed species, you can search the CITES 
database by species name or by country. 

To search by name (scientific name or common name):

    Start at the CITES species database page: <
www.cites.org/eng/resources/species.html>.
    Under the "Search by name" column, select "Genus."
    Type the Genus of the plant of interest and hit enter. 
                You have another opportunity to select information for 
only one country.   
        To see information on all countries, click on "Display Results" at 
the bottom of the screen.
               You'll see a list of all species in the genus of interest.
     Click on the species of interest.
     Click on any of the tabs above the species entry to get more 
information on the species.

To search by country (i.e. for species that are native to the United 
States):

    Start at the CITES species database page: <
www.cites.org/eng/resources/species.html>. 
     Under the column "Search by country", there is a pull-down menu.
          Select United States and click on "Go"
       You will see a tabular summary of the number of listed animals and 
plants native to the United States.
       Click on any of the appendices or click on the link below each 
table to get a full list of all the species that are listed.
       Click on any species entry to see information for that species. 

HOW ARE LISTED SPECIES REGULATED?
>>Permits are required for species that are listed on any of the three 
CITES appendices. 

To find out whether you need a permit and how to get it, go to: <
www.fws.gov/permits/instructions/ObtainPermit.shtml>
For more on all the permits handled by the USFWS, see: <
www.fws.gov/permits/overview/overview.shtml>

HOW CAN I LEARN MORE ABOUT CITES?
>>CITES World - biennial newsletter of CITES.  You can view issues dating 
back to 1999, at: <www.cites.org/eng/news/newsletter.shtml>.

Highlights from previous issues that may be of interest to you:
    Issue 16 (Dec 2005) - U.S. procedures for handling confiscated species
    Issue 15 (July 2005) - U.S. and the Lacey Act
    Issue 14 (Dec 2004) - Accessing CITES trade data

>>Endangered Species Bulletin - USFWS quarterly newsletter with archives 
going back to 1999, at: <www.fws.gov/Endangered/bulletin.html>

September 2005 - focused wholly on CITES. 
View this issue at: <www.fws.gov/endangered/esb/2005/ESB09-05.pdf>. 
Obtain copies of this issue by emailing me at: <Patricia_DeAngelis at fws.gov
> & put : "2005  Endangered Species Bulletin" in the subject line, include 
your name, address, and the number of copies you would like to receive. 
I'll do my best to fill the orders!

*"CITES in a nutshell" was compiled by Patricia De Angelis - Division of 
Scientific Authority - International Affairs Program - U.S. Fish and 
Wildlife Service
Updated July 2009
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