"5 Things to Watch at This Month’s Big Wildlife Trade Treaty Meeting"

"New wildlife trade rules being discussed at CITES could affect 550 species, including elephants, rhinos and giraffes."

"Dozens of important and potentially controversial decisions for the world’s most imperiled wildlife will come out of Geneva over the next few weeks.

That’s where the representatives from 183 nations will gather to discuss issues related to legal and illegal wildlife trade at the 18th triennial meeting of the member parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), a treaty aimed at regulating the commercial sale of threatened plants and wildlife.

CITES protects species by adding them to what’s known as its Appendices — listings of species that may or may not be traded. Species listed on Appendix I are banned from all international trade, while those on Appendix II may only be traded from proven sustainable populations. About 90 percent of CITES listings appear on Appendix II."

John R. Platt reports for the Revelator (Center for Biological Diversity) August 16, 2019.