Reflecting on AEWAs Unique Place in International Environmental Law - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Reflecting on AEWA’s Unique Place in International Environmental Law Melissa Lewis, AEWA Technical Committee/Tilburg University

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Pfeilstorch (‘arrow stork’), University of Rostock, Germany.

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany 1902 Convention for the Protection of Birds Useful for Agriculture S. Yeliseev D. Curtis S. Yeliseev J. Coelho S. Yeliseev J. Coelho M. Watson M. Lewis www.flickr.com/creativecommons

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Examples of ‘noxious’ species under the 1902 Convention: C. Wilson J. Coelho S. de Munck B. Gracey M. Loizou G. Smith L. Blumin S. Yeliseev J.B. Silverio D. Curtis S. Yeliseev www.flickr.com/creativecommons

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Other shortcomings: - Geographic coverage. - Heavily qualified provisions, with no provision for amendment. - No institutional framework (‘sleeping treaty‘). In what ways has international law progressed and how does AEWA compare to other contemporary legal instruments?

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany The geographic scope of subsequent bird-protection treaties Bilateral migratory bird treaties International Convention for the Protection of Birds (1950) 1916: USA & Canada 1936: USA & Mexico 1972: USA & Japan 1973: Japan & Russia 1973: Brazil & Colombia 1974: Japan & Australia 1975: Brazil & Peru 1976: Argentina & Bolivia 1976: USA & Russia 1981: Japan & China 1984: India & Russia 1986: Australia & China 1994: Russia & Republic of Korea

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Flyway conservation and global instruments: Why isn’t the Ramsar Convention enough? J. Lewis Ndumo Game Reserve, South Africa J. Lewis

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Flyway conservation under AEWA First treaty to be explicitly based on the flyway approach. E.g.: Maintenance/restoration of networks of suitable habitat. Hunting legislation to take into account populations’ full geographic range . Leading role in promoting this approach both through its own mechanisms & those developed under other treaties.

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Other distinguishing features of AEWA’s substantive provisions: AEWA’s tiers of conservation norms: - Role of the precautionary principle. - Level of detail and legal rigour. Fundamental principles - Flexibility to evolve over time. Limits of drawing inspiration from other General conservation regional instruments? measures for Annex II species. Legally-binding Action Plan for Table 1 populations. L. Zwarts Wetlands International, State of the World ’ s Waterbirds 2010

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Platforms for the continued cooperation needed to make flyway conservation a reality. ENB ENB

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Implementation mechanisms which fill gaps left by other treaty regimes. AEWA IRP: illegal hunting of the critically endangered sociable lapwing in Syria

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany From ‘sleeping treaties’ to insomniacs: the need to avoid spreading AEWA’s efforts too thin. Possibilities to work through others? Unique contributions which should be prioritised? R. Towell www.flickr.com/creativecommons

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany http://www.gizmag.com/arctic-tern-migration-project/13956/pictures#11

20 th Anniversary of AEWA 9 November 2015 Making Flyway Conservation Happen Bonn, Germany Thank you! Good luck! Thank you! Good Luck! Congratulations! Congratulations!