FWS Releases Negotiating Positions for Spring 2019 CITES Meeting

The Fish and Wildlife Service announced tentative negotiating positions for the upcoming meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), scheduled for May 23 through June 3, 2019, in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The agency's notice includes "proposed amendments to the CITES Appendices (species proposals) as well as proposed resolutions, decisions, and agenda items that the United States might submit for consideration." Among the proposals is a recommendation that any revision to CITES annotations on wood products "account for and prevent potential unintended consequences for trade, allow appropriate timeframes for implementation, and can be supported through harmonized interpretations across CITES Parties." Comments are due Nov. 30