Wild animal and plant trade and protection act 2018 annual report: chapter 4

4. Compliance promotion and enforcement of CITES and WAPPRIITA

4.1. Compliance promotion

Fire salamander. Photo: Stephan Huwiler, Getty Images

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) works in partnership with a broad range of enforcement partners to secure compliance with the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA). These partners include the Canada Border Services Agency, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Transport Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, provincial and territorial law enforcement and conservation authorities, as well as the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. ECCC is also an active partner on the international stage in promoting and verifying compliance with the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Compliance with WAPPRIITA is verified by various means, such as reviewing permits, auditing importers and exporters declarations, conducting inspections at ports of entry, conducting routine or spot inspections of wildlife businesses, sharing information with border officials and other national and international agencies, gathering intelligence, and following up on tips provided by the public.

In 2018, ECCC continued to promote compliance with CITES and WAPPRIITA through more than 20 displays located at various venues, including: airports, science centres, zoos, customs offices and border crossings, as well as through the Digital Display Network (visual communication tool which runs a continuous loop of messaging related to Government of Canada programs and services) located in the Service Canada Centres and Passport Offices across Canada.

ECCC also worked with the Toronto Zoo to complete a new CITES exhibit. The purpose of CITES displays is to educate and inform Canadians about both the impacts of illegal wildlife trade, and the plant and animal species they cannot bring into the country without a CITES import permit.

ECCC promoted compliance with its salamander import restriction to the pet industry, zoos, and aquariums. Activities included social media messages and mail outs to targeted stakeholders.

4.2. Enforcement activities

Poaching and trafficking of wildlife undermines conservation efforts and threatens the conservation of species. Over‑exploitation driven by illegal trade can decimate populations of species. Illegal trade can also threaten the socio‑economic benefits that legal trade in wildlife can provide to certain communities.

Wildlife trafficking worldwide has increased since 2005. Illegal wildlife trade and environmental crime include a wide range of flora and fauna across all continents, and is estimated to be worth $70 to $213 billion USD annuallyFootnote 3.

According to the Wildlife Crime Status Update of 2017Footnote 4, policy innovations, including tightening national and international controls, are starting to show positive effects on illegal trade in wildlife. After a ten-year increase, rates of illegal trade are stabilizing, but close monitoring of activities is essential to make continual improvements in the conservation and protection of wildlife.

4.2.1. Inspections

Inspections are conducted to ensure that the import and export of animals and plants comply with the requirements of WAPPRIITA. Inspections are instrumental in obtaining on-going information on emerging non-compliance risks and threats. The analysis of information collected through inspections informs the development of risk-based priorities for compliance verification.

Inspections are either proactively planned or conducted in response to a referral from another federal department or agency, such as the Canada Border Services Agency, provincial or territorial governments, or the public. About 15% of the inspections conducted under WAPPRIITA focused on Canadian species at high conservation risk or facing a high level of non-compliance, and 85% of the number were focused on foreign species meeting these same criteria of high conservation risk or high level of non-compliance.

In 2018, there were 1,808 inspections under WAPPRIITA, with just over 50% occurring in the Pacific and Yukon Region. Vancouver is one of the largest ports for international trade in North America. Its airport, mail centre and sea ports are all among the highest volume in Canada.

The Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is Canada's second-busiest airport. Most notably, YVR serves as a hub for the movement of goods between Canada and the Asia-Pacific region. In regulating the movement of wildlife through YVR, the Wildlife Enforcement Directorate (WED) is engaged in two main areas: the examination of commercial shipments arriving and departing via commercial carriers (as well as via courier), and the examination of personal imports via passenger luggage at the International Passenger Terminal.

Figure 6 presents the inspections conducted in 2018 under WAPPRIITA by region.

Figure 6: Inspections conducted in 2018 under WAPPRIITA by region

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Figure 6 is a pie chart that presents the percentage of inspections conducted in 2018 under WAPPRIITA by region: 53 percent in the Pacific and Yukon Region; 23 percent in the Prairie and Northern Region; 13 percent in the Ontario Region; 6 percent in the Quebec Region; 5 percent in the Atlantic Region.

4.2.2. Investigations

In 2018, ECCC opened 16 new investigations involving international or interprovincial movements of wildlife. The outcomes of ECCC’s main investigations, including media releases and enforcement notifications, are published online. Please note that open investigations do not necessarily correlate to those published online.

Figure 7 presents the new investigations opened in 2018 under WAPPRIITA by region.

Figure 7: New Investigations opened in 2018 under WAPPRIITA by region

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Note: In the figures provided, the total for new investigations excludes other investigations that are overlapping from previous years.

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Figure 7 is a pie chart that presents the percentage of new investigations opened in 2018 under WAPPRIITA, by region: 45 percent in the Pacific and Yukon Region; 36 percent in the Prairie and Northern Region; 13 percent in the Ontario Region; 6 percent in the Quebec Region; 0 percent in the Atlantic Region.

4.2.3. Violations

There were 285 violations of WAPPRIITA or its regulations recorded in 2018 that resulted in prosecutions, seizures, tickets or warnings.

4.2.4. Convictions

In 2018, there were 21 convictions made for violations of WAPPRIITA or its regulations, which resulted in fines totalling $89,867.

 

Examples of violations of WAPPRIITA or its regulations that led to penalties in 2018
Banff‑based company guilty of unlawfully importing protected coral species into Canada

On December 4, 2018, a Banff, Alberta company pleaded guilty to one count of violating subsection 6(2) of WAPPRIITA (importing without a permit) and was penalized $10,000. The company was also ordered to declare all imports of wildlife or plant products to ECCC prior to the importation for a period of two years.

This case began in February 2016 when CBSA officials notified ECCC of a shipment from the United States containing coral. The inspection found that the shipment contained approximately 115 kilograms of Blue coral and Stony coral, both regulated under CITES and subject to strict permitting requirements to ensure that trade does not threaten the survival of the species in the wild.

Poaching: $6,000 in fines for three Quebec hunters

On January 26, 2018, three men from Dégelis, Quebec pleaded guilty to illegally transporting poached Moose from New Brunswick to Quebec. In addition to a combined sentence of $6,000 for the WAPPRIITA offences, the court also ordered the confiscation of the seized Moose meat, two Moose antlers and the two Moose registration certificates (Quebec).

One of the men also pleaded guilty to an offence under the provincial regulations of New Brunswick and was fined $1,200 with seven days in prison and a one-month probation order. The individual is prohibited from hunting or fishing in New Brunswick for a period of five years.

Moose. Photo: Archives/François Drouin, infoweekend.ca
Home-based pet supply owner fined for the illegal import of regulated reptiles

On July 20, 2018, an individual from Ontario pleaded guilty to violating WAPPRIITA and was fined $7,000, which was directed to the Government of Canada’s Environmental Damages Fund.

The case began in September 2017 when CBSA officials notified ECCC of discrepancies in paperwork accompanying a shipment of reptiles imported from Africa. During the inspection, officers discovered the shipment contained forty- two Spiny-tailed Lizards known as Uromastyx geyri, a regulated species under CITES. The defendant was charged and convicted of importing these species into Canada without a valid permit.

Seizure of CITES Appendix I Tiger Taxidermy - Organized Crime

On May 3, 2018, ECCC received a referral from the Vancouver Police Department after entering an auction house as part of a large drug operation and finding a taxidermy mount of a tiger.

The stuffed tiger was seized by ECCC, as the owners were not present and there was no way to determine if the animal was legally obtained.

4.3 Collaboration with provincial and territorial partners

As noted in Section 1.3, several provincial and territorial agencies have memorandums of understanding (MOU) or agreements with the federal government allowing designated officers to enforce WAPPRIITA. The collaboration between Canada and its provincial and territorial partners is advantageous, resulting in better coordination of efforts and resources in undertaking wildlife enforcement actions, especially large-scale operations.

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