Trade analysis of five CITES-listed taxa

Transcription

1 Trade analysis of five CITES-listed taxa Vicki Crook, TRAFFIC 12 th December 2013

2 Presentation overview Introduction Methods Overview of each taxon Data quality Conclusions

3 Introduction The 2010 EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) aims to prevent illegal timber entering EU. CITES regulates international trade in listed species through a permit system. Species with a valid CITES permit are considered to comply with the requirements of the EUTR Analysis of trade in five timber producing taxa listed in the CITES appendices: Ramin Gonystylus spp., rosewoods Dalbergia spp., Mahogany Swietenia macrophylla, Afrormosia Pericopsis elata and Red Cedar Cedrela odorata.

4 Methods Data sources: CITES trade database Global Customs data from UN Comtrade EU Customs data from Eurostat ITTO Illegal trade data from CITES trade database, EU-TWIX, CITES Biennial Reports, TRAFFIC Bulletin

5 Ramin Gonystylus spp. Genus comprises >20 species found in S. E. Asia and the Pacific G. bancanus main commercial source. Listed in CITES Appendix III in 2001 and App. II in Traded as sawn wood, timber, timber pieces and carvings. Global direct trade about m3 per year Trade increased in 2008 and 2009, and then decreased again to lower levels of 3-5,000 m3 in 2011.

6 Ramin exporters and importers

7 Ramin EU imports The EU accounted for % of global direct imports during , according to import data. EU imports totalled 3,045,556 m3 + 1,592,620 kg + 238,895 timber pieces during Exporter data were much less complete and indicated the EU was a less prominent global importer. The Netherlands was a major EU importer, followed by Italy and Germany.

8 Ramin Illegal trade Seizures of Ramin have been reported in the CITES Trade database, the CITES biennial reports, EU-TWIX and the TRAFFIC Bulletin. Many seizures involve carvings, bowls and other finished products. Some traders/retailers were unaware of CITES requirements and did not have CITES permits. High levels of seizures of carvings and timber pieces were reported in the CITES trade database in , with lower levels reported in more recent years ( ).

9 Rosewoods Dalbergia spp. Widely distributed genus comprising 250 species of trees, shrubs and lianas. Several species listed in CITES Appendices I, II, III. Traded as round wood, sawn wood, and finished items. Precious wood - very valuable, fetching up to USD93,766/m3 for instrument blanks.

10 Rosewoods CITES Appendix I species One species, D. nigra, is listed in CITES Appendix I. CITES Appendix I listing means that commercial trade in wild taken specimens is not generally permitted. Majority of trade in pre-convention specimens for which there is a CITES exemption. However, wild source trade has also been reported including as recently as 2011.

11 Dalbergia nigra - trade in carvings

12 Rosewoods CITES Appendices II & III species 48 species of Dalbergia from Madagascar were listed in CITES Appendix II in Previously listed in App. III. Four other species were listed in Appendix II in 2013: D.granadillo, D. retusa and D. stevensonii from Central America D. cochinchinensis from South-East Asia These species were previously listed in App. III. One species D. darienensis listed in Appendix III since 2011 for populations from Panama.

13 Rosewoods CITES Appendices II & III species cont. Limited trade data available for all these species, in particular those very recently listed. D. granadillo, D. retusa, D. stevensonii and D. cochinchinensis data are patchy, low level trade reported. No trade records for D. darienensis. Dalbergia from Madagascar trade reported to be high e.g. 36 tonnes in Zero quota currently in place.

14 Rosewoods EU imports Globally, EU countries imported 26-50% of timber (m3) and 10% carvings. EU counties imported pre-convention and wild Appendix I Rosewood - neither permitted for commercial purposes under EU Wildlife Trade Regulations, very few exemptions. EU imports of Appendix II and III species were low level. Guatemala, Belize and the USA were the main exporters and Germany was the main importer. EU Customs data showed higher trade volumes but it is not known whether or not they include CITES listed species.

15 Rosewoods Illegal trade Extensive illegal trade and extremely high prices have been reported. Organised smuggling and trans-national illegal logging rings have been reported in a number of countries. Most of the illegal trade in rosewoods is reported at the genus level.

16 Mahogany Swietenia macrophylla Large deciduous tree endemic to the Neotropics. Planted extensively both within and outside its natural range. Listed in CITES Appendix II in Traded as sawn wood, timber and veneer. Valuable and highly sought after.

17 Mahogany Global trade patterns Trade in Mahogany from range States, UN Comtrade exporter data reported as m3 2. CITES importer data m3 and kg (converted to m3) 3. CITES exporter data m3 and kg (converted to m3)

18 Mahogany importers & exporters

19 Mahogany EU imports Globally, the EU is not a major importer of Mahogany, accounting for just 3% of direct imports. Substantial differences between CITES data and Customs data. During , EU imports reported to CITES were <2,000 m3; Customs data indicated EU imports were approximately 222,000 m3. The high volumes reported to Customs are primarily accounted for by imports to Spain from Ecuador.

20 Mahogany EU imports cont. Main EU importer was Germany according to CITES import data or Spain according to Customs import data. Main range States exporting to EU were were Brazil, Peru and Nicaragua according to CITES import data and Ecuador according to Customs import data. EU re-exports were less than quantities imported, according to CITES data.

21 Mahogany Illegal trade Seizures of Mahogany have been regularly reported throughout the last decade. Seizures from 2008 onwards reported in EU-TWIX appear to be both fewer in number and involving smaller quantities than in previous years. Recent seizures have been reported: pieces seized in Peru in 2009 (TRAFFIC Bulletin) and 283 m3 seized in the US in 2011 (CITES trade database).

22 Afrormosia Pericopsis elata Legume found in west and central Africa. Listed in CITES Appendix II in Traded as logs, sawn wood and veneer. Exports peaked in 2007 at 27,153 m3 and subsequently declined to about 12,000 m3 per year in 2010 and Amongst most economically valuable tree species in Cameroon and the Congo

23 Afrormosia importers & exporters

24 Afrormosia EU imports EU is a major importer of Afrormosia. EU countries imported 95,304 m3 during Imports peaked in 2007 but remained relatively high in 2010 and 2011, approximately 10-12,000 m3 per year. Sixteen EU Member States imported Afrormosia - Belgium and Italy were the main EU importers. Exporters reported trade to four EU Member States which did not themselves report any imports.

25 Afrormosia Illegal trade Seizures of Afrormosia have been reported in the CITES Trade database, EU-TWIX and the TRAFFIC Bulletin. The biggest seizures appear to be composed of veneer, timber and logs. Large seizures were reported in 2006 and 2008 by Belgium and Germany (8 685 m3 and m2 respectively) with several smaller ones in 2009/2010. No seizures were reported in 2011.

26 Red Cedar Cedrela odorata Occurs in the forests of Central and South America. First listed in CITES Appendix III in Current CITES Appendix III (and Annex B) listing applies to populations of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, and Peru. Remaining (non-cites) populations also listed in Annex C of EU Wildlife Trade Regulations. Traded as sawn wood and, to a lesser extent, carvings, timber, timber pieces and veneer. Economically valuable locally and for export market.

27 1,000 m3 Red Cedar trade patterns High trade reported up to 60,000 m3 / year. Large spike in trade evident in Reported by exporter Direct imports (m3) to the EU of Cedrela odorata, (Source: CITES trade database). Reported by importer

28 Red Cedar importers & exporters

29 Red Cedar EU imports EU Member States accounted for a relatively small proportion of global trade. EU countries imported 38,012 m2 veneer and 9,658 m3 sawn wood and timber and veneer during Spain was the main EU importer of Red Cedar, with a total of ten EU countries reporting some imports. The main exporters to the EU were Brazil and Peru.

30 Red Cedar Illegal trade Illegal logging has been reported in many Red Cedar range States. Low level seizures reported in CITES trade database, with the exception of 25,800 kg of sawn wood imported to Spain from Brazil in Few seizures reported when compared to other CITES listed timber species and scale of illegal trade not known.

31 Large inconsistencies in trade data. May be caused by a range of factors including: export permits not being fully utilised; time lags between exports in one year being imported in another; differences in the units/terms/source codes used by trade partners; absence of CITES annual reports from key exporters; differences in reporting practices for species that are partially listed (e.g. geographic range, products in trade) or listed in Appendix III. data errors Data quality May also be caused by unreported (intentional or unintentional) illegal trade.

32 Data quality cont. Some countries have not submitted CITES annual reports or have taken out reservations Global Customs data at the species level were only available for Mahogany - large differences between the volume of trade reported by CITES and Customs are evident, not possible to make these comparisons for other taxa. The CITES listings include annotations that define which forms are covered by CITES. However, the annotations may not include all products that are traded e.g. finished articles of Dalbergia species.

33 Conclusions The five taxa reviewed include commodity timbers traded in high volumes and semi-precious or precious woods traded in smaller quantities. Trade in many species has declined over the last decade, however, trade remains substantial and large spikes in trade are evident for Ramin, Mahogany and Red Cedar. Data on trade in Appendix II and III rosewoods are patchy. Trade in the Appendix I Brazilian Rosewood has declined although wild sourced timber reported in trade.

34 Conclusions cont. The EU is a major global importer of Ramin and Afrormosia and to some extent rosewood. It is a relatively minor importer of Mahogany and Red Cedar. A wide range of discrepancies between trade reported by EU Member States and their trading partners is evident. Illegal trade has been reported for all species, both as a result of a lack of awareness of CITES provisions and through intentional circumventing of CITES controls. Illegal trade in Rosewood in particular appears to be an increasing concern.

35 Thank you! Any questions?