WAPPRIITA annual report 2015

Official title: Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA): annual report 2015

Table of contents

• Highlights
• 1 Introduction
  • 1.1 Purpose of the annual report
  • 1.2 WAPPRIITA and the CITES
  • 1.3 Responsibilities under WAPPRIITA
• 2 Wild animals and plants in trade
  • 2.1 Amendment to Schedule 1 of Wild Animal and Plant Trade Regulations (WAPTR)
  • 2.2 CITES permitting
    • 2.2.1 Permitting overview
    • 2.2.2 Exemptions
    • 2.2.3 Issuance and monitoring of CITES permits
  • 2.3 CITES permits issued in 2015
    • 2.3.1 Export permits and re-export certificates
    • 2.3.2 Permits for multiple shipments
    • 2.3.3 Imports into Canada
  • 2.4 Canada’s trading partners
• 3 Assessing the risk to species from trade
  • 3.1 Non-detriment findings
  • 3.2 Review of Significant Trade in specimens of Appendix II species
• 4 Compliance promotion and enforcement of CITES and WAPPRIITA
  • 4.1 Compliance promotion
  • 4.2 Enforcement activities
    • 4.2.1 Inspections
    • 4.2.2 Investigations
  • 4.3 Collaboration with provincial and territorial partners
• 5 International cooperation
  • 5.1 CITES Conferences of the Parties
  • 5.2 CITES committees and working groups
  • 5.3 INTERPOL Wildlife Crime Working Group
  • 5.4 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC)
• 6 Further information

Highlights

Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act

• Regulation: On April 1, 2015, Schedule I of the Wild Animal and Plant Trade Regulations (WAPTR) was amended to reflect decisions made at the 16^th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP 16) to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Three Canadian species were added to Appendix II of CITES, providing them with additional protection.
• Exports: In 2015, Canadian jurisdictions issued 5630 export permits and re-export certificates under the WAPPRIITA, the legislative vehicle by which Canada meets its CITES obligations. As with past years, the majority of shipments in 2015 were of cultivated American Ginseng and wild-harvested animals (primarily the American Black Bear), as well as their parts and derivatives.
• Imports: In 2015, Canada issued 180 import permits, which were mainly for the import of old ivory and hunting trophies from legitimate hunts.
• Investigations: Environment and Climate Canada (ECCC) conducted 84 new investigations of suspected offences under WAPPRIITA in 2015. Section 4.2.2 describes four examples of investigations that led to prosecution and resulted in convictions in 2015 for having violated WAPPRIITA or its regulations.
• Standards: ECCC has published its service standards for the issuance of permits under WAPPRIITA, and it tracks its performance against those standards.