On Wednesday, August 21, 2019, several Proposals related to timber were adopted by consensus of the Parties at CITES CoP18. These wins, together with the submission of the Accra Declaration on combating illegal trade in rosewoods, timber, and forest products in West Africa, adopted on July 31, 2019, submitted by Sierra Leone in relation to agenda item 34, confirm the will of the West African States to collaborate regionally and internationally to improve conservation of important tree species.
Proposal 50
What the Proposal does: Proposal 50 relates to the listing Widdringtonia whytei (Mulanje cedar) in CITES Appendix II, without annotation specifying the types of specimens to be included, in order to include all readily recognizable parts and derivatives.
Why the Proposal is needed: This tree is listed as “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species after years of over-exploitation from unsustainable and illegal logging, alongside other environmental factors. Within the forest, cedar trees provide habitat and seed food source for birds, small mammals, and insects. Based on available trade data, the regulation of trade in this species is necessary, along with major re-plantation efforts, in order to avoid it becoming eligible for inclusion in Appendix I in the very near future.
Proposal 53
What the Proposal does: Proposal 53 was submitted by Ivory Coast and the European Union to revise the current annotation #5 applying to the listing of Pericopsis elata in Appendix II and to expand its scope to include plywood and transformed wood. Pericopsis elata has been included in CITES Appendix II since 1992, and the species has regularly been subject to CITES Review of Significant Trade. However, a loophole has inadvertently allowed instances where international trade transactions in Pericopsis elata specimens have avoided CITES controls. Approval of Proposal 53 closes this loophole and provides the species greater protection under CITES.
Why the Proposal is needed: Excessive exploitation of Pericopsis elata by commercial and illegal loggers is destroying not only the targeted trees but also is adversely impacting other endangered CITES-listed wildlife species which live in these forests, including chimpanzees, gorillas, and elephants. In addition, the over-exploitation of the trees is decreasing the natural resources on which local communities rely for their livelihoods.
Proposal 54
What the Proposal does: Malawi submitted Proposal 54 to request the listing of Pterocarpus tinctorius (Mukula) to CITES Appendix II without annotation specifying the types of specimens to be included, in order to include all readily recognizable parts and derivatives.
Why the Proposal is needed: The primary threat to Pterocarpus tinctorius is over-harvesting, including both legal and widespread illegal extraction, for the international trade. As other African rosewood species have become scarcer and increasingly protected, demand for P. tinctorius has increased. Though most illegal and unsustainable international trade is currently of logs and sawn timber, experience with CITES listings of other rosewood species has demonstrated that other annotations can be easily circumvented. On the basis of available information, the regulation of trade in the species is necessary to avoid it becoming eligible for inclusion in CITES Appendix I in the near future.