Legislation may reduce illegal wildlife trade in Canada.

Conservationists are welcoming new, federal legislation against trade in endangered species, but are concerned enforcement will remain weak.

The Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA), to be proclaimed in fall 1995, is intended to help curb a practice that the World Wildlife Fund says can be as profitable as the drug trade.

Although Canada signed the Convention on Illegal Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in 1975, illegal wildlife trade continues to be the second highest cause of species decline in the country, next to habitat destruction.

Animal Alliance of Canada states that the risk of detection of illegal trade in Canada is minimal, and believes the country is not living up to the commitment it made by signing CITES. The organization plans to draft a formal petition asking the US government to invoke trade sanctions against Canada due to its lack of commitment to CITES.

Until now, CITES has been enforced under the Canadian Export and Import Permits Act. International trade controls are administered by Environment Canada through Revenue Canada Customs, with the RCMP responsible for any investigations within Canada. Conservationists have long stated that not enough monitoring occurs inside the country, and that the RCMP concentrate more on drug trafficking and are less accustomed to dealing with wildlife trade.

Animal Alliance says Canada has also failed to fund sufficient enforcement. In 1993, only one charge was laid for import violations and the alliance says not enough officers have been appointed to monitor properly the major trade centres, which include British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and major ...