India: UN Species Conservation Conference

In view of the rapid decline of many animal species worldwide, representatives of more than a hundred countries want to decide this week on stronger protection for certain species in India.

At the 13th UN Conference on the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) in the Indian city of Gandhinagar, the focus is on the protection of threatened species and the preservation of important habitats. Ten animal species — including Asian elephants, jaguars, and several species of sharks and birds — are expected to be newly added to CMS protection lists. If species are placed on the highest protection list, member countries are required to ban the killing of these animals. For the second-highest list, countries should at least increase their cooperation in protecting them.

According to UN estimates, one million animal and plant species will become extinct in the coming decades. Animal welfare advocates say that humans pose a major threat to the species mentioned — for example through hunting and the destruction of habitats.

The conference, which ends next Saturday (22 February), will therefore also discuss measures that can reduce the dangerous impacts of human activities on migratory animals. These include artificial light, which increasingly illuminates the night sky and can thereby alter behavioural patterns. Problems caused by the construction of ever more roads and railway lines, which can pose dangerous obstacles for migratory animals, are also to be addressed.

The Convention has 130 member states, including Switzerland, almost all countries in Europe and South America, and most countries in Africa — notably absent are the USA, China, and Russia.

Joyce Msuya, Deputy Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said: «In the face of the unprecedented crisis of biodiversity loss, 2020 is a critical year to strengthen measures for species protection, ecosystem conservation, and meaningful progress toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.»

«We must seize every opportunity we have, and the CMS COP is a decisive milestone for biodiversity to thrive on this planet.» CMS COP13 will add new species to protection under CMS and will also address emerging issues and threats.