Hindustan Times (Lucknow)

Break the wildlife traffickin­g value chain

Preying on endangered species at natural heritage sites affects biodiversi­ty, tourism

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That the world’s natural heritage is under severe threat is old news. But if you want to know the depth of this global crisis, then do read this latest report from the WWF: Halting Illegal Trade for CITES Species From World Heritage Sites. According to the report, Natural World Heritage sites are threatened by destructiv­e industrial activities, overexploi­tation and traffickin­g of CITES species. The Convention on Internatio­nal Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) is an internatio­nal agreement that aims to ensure that transnatio­nal trade of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.

These natural world heritage sites support large population­s of rare plant and animal species, including almost a third of the world’s remaining 3,890 wild tigers and 40% of all African elephants, and function as the last refuge for critically endangered species such as the Javan rhinos and vaquitas. From an Indian perspectiv­e, the three world heritage sites that are being plundered are: The Western Ghats, the Great Himalayan National Park and the Khangchend­zonga National Park. The illegal harvesting of species not only impacts biodiversi­ty but also has social and economic costs. More than 90% of natural heritage sites support recreation and tourism as well as provide jobs. Many of these benefits are dependent on the presence of CITES-listed species in these sites.

It goes without saying that this cannot go on. As the WWF correctly says, “Government­s must redouble their efforts and address the wildlife traffickin­g value chain.” There must be more collaborat­ion between CITES, the World Heritage Convention and national authoritie­s to lead a more coordinate­d, comprehens­ive response to halt wildlife traffickin­g - from harvesting of species in source countries, transporta­tion through processing destinatio­ns, to sales in consumer markets.

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