The Evolving Role of CITES in Regulating the International Timber Trade

Date01 November 2013
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1111/reel.12045
AuthorSara F. Oldfield
Published date01 November 2013
The Evolving Role of CITES in Regulating the
International Timber Trade
Sara F. Oldfield
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered
Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) applies to the
full range of animal and plant species and products
that are or may become adversely affected by interna-
tional trade. It is perhaps best known for its role in
the conservation of charismatic mammals such as
elephants and rhinos that have been targeted for cen-
turies for their valuable wildlife products. Few species
of plants have received the same level of attention
under the Convention. International trade in timber is
the most valuable form of wildlife trade and illegal
sourcing and trade in timber is widespread. The use
of CITES to control international trade in valuable
timber species was originally considered controversial
with other international mechanisms, generally non-
regulatory, considered more appropriate. This article
describes how CITES is becoming increasingly
accepted as a tool to demonstrate and monitor the
legality of trade in timber species listed in the Appen-
dices of the Convention.
INTRODUCTION
The 16th Conference of the Parties (CoP) to the Conven-
tion on International Trade in Endangered Species of
Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES),1held in Bangkok in
March 2013, witnessed general acceptance of the role of
CITES in regulating international trade in timber. At
the Conference, proposals to list over 160 commercially
valuable ‘precious wood’ species from Madagascar, Asia
and Central America were approved by consensus.
When the listings came into effect in June 2013, over
220 timber species were included in the Appendices of
the Convention.
Over the past forty years the evolution of CITES has
included a radical shift in attitudes to the inclusion of
timber in the Appendices of the Convention. This article
charts the history of the listing of timber species during
a period of growing awareness of the loss of tropical
forests and, more recently, the scale of illegality in the
sourcing and international trade in timber. The article
first provides a chronology of CITES timber listing pro-
posals, followed by a discussion of the measures taken
to address polarized views on the use of CITES for
timber species. The article then turns to the policy
responses to the concerns about illegal logging that
provide a wider context for the role of CITES in regu-
lating international trade in timber species. The Inter-
national Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) has
provided an important forum for discussion of forest
management and timber supply. Therefore, the article
next offers an account of the shifting relationship
between ITTO and CITES, followed by a brief account
of the implementation mechanisms of CITES for timber
species which are now supported by a joint programme
of work between CITES and ITTO.
The issues surrounding the use of CITES for timber
species are complex. This article aims to show that with
increasing acceptance of the need to place the interna-
tional timber trade in a legal framework and the expe-
rience gained by implementation of CITES measures
for timber, CITES is now an important component of
regulating the sustainable and legal supply of timber in
international trade.
LISTING TIMBER SPECIES IN THE
CITES APPENDICES
At the core of CITES are the lists of species, contained in
the three Appendices, to which the provisions of the
Convention apply. Species threatened with extinction
which are or may be affected by trade are included in
Appendix I of the Convention and specimens and prod-
ucts of such species can only be exported under excep-
tional circumstances. Species may be listed in Appendix
II of CITES if they are not necessarily threatened with
extinction now but may become so unless trade in
specimens of such species is subject to strict regulation
in order to avoid utilization incompatible with their
survival. Listing in Appendices I and II requires agree-
ment by the CoP, whereas Appendix III of CITES
includes species listed by range States unilaterally. As
noted by Gehring and Ruffing,2decisions arising from
1Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Wash-
ington, DC, 3 March 1973; in force 1 July 1975) (‘CITES’).
2T. Gehring and E. Ruffing, ‘When Arguments Prevail over Power:
The CITES Procedure for the Listing of Endangered Species’, 8:2
Global Environmental Politics (2008), 123, at 129.
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Review of European Community & International Environmental Law
RECIEL 22 (3) 2013. ISSN 2050-0386
© 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA.
291

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