International cooperation on conservation

• CITES stands for Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of wild Fauna and Flora
• CITES was established

  1973
• Aim of CITES

  Ensure trade in endangered species does not threaten their survival
• Trade in wild plants is prohibited for commercial purposes
• Trade on artificially propagated plants is allowed, subject to a permit
• Legal smuggling of specimens is still a problem despite the existence of CITES
• Rio Convention on Biological Diversity was held

  1992
• 100 countries signed the Rio Convention on Biological Diversity out of 196
• Convention on Biological Diversity

  Dedicated to promoting sustainable development
• The Convention includes indigenous people and their need for good medicines
• Aims of the Convention

  • Conservation of biological diversity
  • Sustainable use of its components
  • Collaboration for search and access to genetic resources
• The Convention encourages international collaboration for site conservation
• Environmental impact assessments were introduced as a result of the Convention
• Countryside Stewardship Schemes

  Help maintain biodiversity at a local level
• The scheme opened government payments to farmers and other land managers to enhance and conserve the environment
• The general aim of Countryside Stewardship Schemes was to make conservation a part of normal farming and land management practice
• Countryside Stewardship Schemes aim to sustain the beauty and diversity of the landscape
• Countryside Stewardship Schemes improve, extend, and create wildlife habitats
• Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA)

  Carried out before any major development in significant countries
• Criteria used to decide if an EIA is necessary

  • Size of the development
  • Environmental sensitivity of the location
  • Type of impact
• Main stages of an EIA

  1. Screening

  2. Scoping

  3. Impact assessment

  4. Reporting

  5. Decision making
• Possible outcomes following an EIA

  • Development being blocked
  • More environmentally friendly solution being reached
• Problems faced during the implementation, or caused by the outcome of an EIA