College of Law and Political Science, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China.
Conserv Biol. 2022 Feb;36(1):e13837. doi: 10.1111/cobi.13837. Epub 2021 Sep 29.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the inadequacy of China's legal protection of wildlife. Long-standing illegal wildlife trade in China and worldwide increases the risk of zoonotic infectious diseases. We sought to improve the understanding of China' legal system for the protection of wildlife, which has at its core the wildlife protection law, by systematically evaluating the laws and regulations of China's Wildlife Protection Framework. We examined how existing legal documents (e.g., the Wildlife Protection Law 2018) are directly or indirectly related to wildlife conservation. The inherent defects of wildlife protection legislation include a narrow scope of protection, insufficient public participation, and inconsistent enforcement among responsible agencies. Solutions to improve China's Wildlife Protection Law include expanding the legal protection of wildlife, and improving monitoring of wildlife protection. Strengthening legislation will be the basis for effective regulation of the use of wild animals. We advocate the establishment of a sound wildlife protection legal system for resolving conflicts between humans and wild animals and preventing zoonotic disease, such a system will have a profound impact on the sustainable development of China's wildlife resources.
新冠疫情暴露出中国在野生动物保护方面的法律保护不足。中国和全球范围内长期存在的非法野生动物贸易增加了人畜共患传染病的风险。我们旨在通过系统评估中国野生动物保护框架的法律法规，提高对中国野生动物保护法律体系的理解，该体系的核心是野生动物保护法。我们研究了现有法律文件（例如，2018 年野生动物保护法）如何直接或间接地与野生动物保护相关。野生动物保护立法的固有缺陷包括保护范围狭窄、公众参与不足以及责任机构之间执法不一致。完善中国野生动物保护法的解决方案包括扩大野生动物的法律保护，加强野生动物保护监测。加强立法将是有效规范野生动物使用的基础。我们主张建立健全的野生动物保护法律体系，以解决人类与野生动物之间的冲突，预防人畜共患疾病，这一体系将对中国野生动物资源的可持续发展产生深远影响。
