IWMC  World Conservation Trust

Florida, 7 October 2003

Chief
Division of Management Authority
US Fish and Wildlife Service
4401 North Fairfax Drive Room 700
ARLINGTON, VA, 22203
Fax 703-358-2280
Email managementauthority@fws.gov

Re: Comments Supporting Draft Policy for Enhancement
      of Survival Permits for Foreign Species

Dear Sir,

It is with great interest that we acquainted ourselves with the Draft Policy announced by the Fish and Wildlife Service for "Enhancement of Survival" permits for foreign species listed under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (ESA). We have noticed that this policy would provide guidance under which the FWS will consider the issuance of Section 10(a)(1)(A) enhancement-of-survival permits as incentives to encourage conservation of foreign-listed species in the wild.

With this letter, we would like to convey to you and the FWS our strong support for that proposed Policy. We find it in line with the principles that our organization is promoting and with the basic objectives of the Convention on the Biological Diversity. In our opinion, its implementation could move the policy of the United States of America much closer to that adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in its Strategic Vision through 2005 and specific Resolutions, such as Resolutions Conf. 8.3, 10.14 (Rev. CoP12), 10.15 (Rev. CoP12) and others. It should therefore correct the image of the United States in international fora that presents it as a country with a double language, i.e. promoting the sustainable use of wild resources at the national level and protectionism at the international level.

The information accompanying the announcement of the draft Policy is self-explanatory and we do not want to repeat here the valuable arguments presented. We share them basically. What we must however underline is that we strongly hope that the implementation of the proposed Policy will actually improve the past situation, under which permits are issued only in very rare occasions and under extremely strict conditions, as recognized in the provided information.

In other words, we would strongly recommend that the conditions to be established for the issue of permits be not excessive and, in practice, almost impossible to meet by many foreign States, in particular from the developing world, from which many species potentially concerned originate. For example, the granting or acceptance of quotas by the Conference of the Parties to CITES should in principle be sufficient to justify the granting of permits under the ESA.

The other element we would like to underline refers to the ESA requirement of "enhancement survival". This principle, recognized as stricter than the CITES "no detriment" principle, should not be interpreted in a way that would, in many circumstances, make the issue of a permit impossible. As the precautionary measure in CITES Resolution Conf. 9.24 (Rev. CoP12), pursuant to which the Parties shall act "in the best interest of the conservation of the species", the "enhancement survival" principal should not always be interpreted to limit or prohibit the use of the species. To take another example than those provided in the information provided by the FWS, we would refer to the case of the African elephant in Botswana, where the continuous increase of the population is leading it to extremely serious habitat consequences and detrimental effects on the species and many others.

To conclude, Sir, we would like to reiterate our strong support for the draft Policy and encouragement in favour of a smooth and balanced implementation to the benefit of the countries concerned, their local populations and the conservation of their wildlife.

Yours faithfully,

Eugene Lapointe
IWMC President
Former Secretary General of CITES (1982-1990)

Promoting the Sustainable Use of Wild Resources
- Whether Terrestrial or Aquatic
- as a Conservation Mechanism