Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats

The Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats, or EUROBATS, is an international treaty that binds its States Parties on the conservation of bats in their territories. It was signed in 1991 under the auspices of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), with the Agreement entering into force in 1994. In August 2021, the Agreement applied to 38 of 63 range states.

EUROBATS
Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats
TypeMultilateral
ContextBat conservation
Signed4 December 1991 (1991-12-04)
LocationLondon, United Kingdom
Effective16 January 1994
ConditionRatification by five range states
Parties
List
DepositaryGovernment of the United Kingdom
Languages
Full text
Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats at Wikisource

History

The Agreement was concluded as "Agreement on the Conservation of Bats in Europe" in September 1991 during the Third Meeting of the Parties of the Convention on Migratory Species. It entered into force on 16 January 1994, after the required number of five states (Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and UK) had ratified it.

In 2000, the Parties decided to change the Agreement's name into its current form "Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats". In 2001, the Agreement became part of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

Aim of the agreement

The overall goal of the Agreement is to provide a framework for bat conservation for the member states and those that have not yet joined. According to the agreement text, member states prohibit the deliberate capture, keeping or killing of bats except for research purposes for which a special permit is required. Furthermore, the member states identify important sites for bat conservation, survey the status and trends of bat populations and study their migratory patterns. Based on the result of these monitoring activities the Agreement develops and reviews recommendations and guidelines that shall be implemented by the Parties on national levels.

Bodies of the agreement

Meeting of the parties

The Meeting of the parties is the highest decision-making body of the Agreement and adopts Resolutions. Every Party has one vote. Non-Party range states as well as bat conservation organisations may be represented as observers at the meetings.

The Meeting of the Parties takes place at changing locations every three to four years, most recently in Prague, Czech Republic, 20 – 22 September 2010. (Status: October 2012)

Advisory committee

The advisory committee is the working body of the agreement. It evaluates data and discusses scientific issues concerning bat research and conservation to set priorities for the Agreement' future work. The committee deals with topics like bat migration, light pollution or the impact of wind turbines on bat populations. Furthermore, it drafts the Resolutions to be adopted at the Meetings of the Parties.

The Committee meets once a year, most recently in Dublin, Ireland, 15–17 May 2012. (Status: October 2012)

Standing committee

The standing committee is the administrative body of the Agreement. It monitors the execution of the Secretariat's budget, oversees the implementation of policies by the Secretariat and discusses further administrative matters like staff issues. The committee was established by the 5th Meeting of the Parties in autumn 2006 to redesign the Advisory Committee to scientific issues.

The Committee shall meet once a year, if a meeting is needed, at the UN Campus in Bonn/Germany. The first Meeting took place in March 2007, the most recent one in Paris, France, on 28 March 2012. (Status: October 2012)

Secretariat

The Secretariat is the executive body of the Agreement. It coordinates and organises the activities of the Meeting of the Parties, the Advisory Committee and the Standing Committee and undertakes initiatives for implementing the aspired aims, attracting more member states and exchanging information. Furthermore, it coordinates international research and monitoring activities.

Another main task of the Secretariat is to raise public awareness. The “European Bat Night” goes back to an initiative of the EUROBATS Secretariat and is today an event in more than 30 European states.

The Secretariat was established by the 1st Meeting of the Parties in 1995 and started its work in Bonn/Germany in 1996. Since June 2006 it is accommodated at the UN Campus in the former parliamentary building of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Agreement area
The area of the Agreement is mostly based in the Western Palaearctic region

When it was signed in 1991, the agreement defined the area of the agreement as "the continent of Europe."[1] This ambiguity led to some confusion, and multiple resolutions were passed to try to clarify this matter. A resolution of the 2nd Session of the Meeting of Parties in 1998 defined the area as follows: the Western Palaearctic region, excluding North Africa, Iceland and many of Middle Eastern states in its definition. This definition was reaffirmed in 2006.[2][3]

However, at the 6th Session of the Meeting of Parties in 2010, Resolution 6.3 defined the scope of the agreement as the Western Palaearctic region. More specifically, it stated that its boundaries were as follow:[4]

This new definition recognized that European bats were migrating to and from beyond the previously designated geographical scope of the Agreement as defined in 1998. This new definition included countries in the Middle East and North Africa, the islands owned by European states in the Mediterranean as well as some Central Asian states.[4]

Species

EUROBATS currently lists 51 species of bat that occur naturally in Europe that the Agreement pertains to. They are as follow:[5]

Pertaining states

States parties

The following are all the states that have ratified the Agreement, and are regarded as its member states:[6]

Country Date of signing Date of deposit of instrument of ratification
 Albania 22 June 2001
 Belgium 4 December 1991 14 May 2003
 Bosnia and Herzegovina 22 July 2021
 Bulgaria 9 November 1999
 Croatia 8 August 2000
 Cyprus 13 November 2012
 Czech Republic 24 February 1994
 Denmark 4 December 1991 6 January 1994
 Estonia 11 November 2004
 Finland 20 September 1999
 France 10 December 1993 7 July 1995
 Georgia 25 July 2002
 Germany 5 December 1991 18 October 1993
 Hungary 22 June 1994
 Ireland 21 June 1993 21 June 1995
 Italy 20 October 2005
 Israel 15 December 2014
 Latvia 1 August 2003
 Lithuania 28 November 2001
 Luxembourg 4 December 1991 29 October 1993
 Malta 2 March 2001
 Moldova 2 February 2001
 Monaco 23 July 1999
 Montenegro 28 March 2011
 Netherlands 4 December 1991 17 March 1992
 North Macedonia 15 September 1999
 Norway 3 February 1993 Not necessary
 Poland 10 April 1996
 Portugal 4 June 1993 10 January 1996
 Romania 20 July 2000
 San Marino 9 April 2009
 Serbia 8 February 2019
 Slovakia 9 July 1998
 Slovenia 5 December 2003
 Sweden 4 March 1992 Not necessary
  Switzerland 27 July 2013
 Ukraine 30 September 1999
 United Kingdom 4 December 1991 9 September 1992

Range states

The following are all of the states that have territory within the range of the Agreement, but have yet to sign or ratify it:[6]

Country
 Algeria
 Andorra
 Armenia
 Austria
 Azerbaijan
 Belarus
 Egypt
 Greece
 Holy See
 Iran (Islamic Republic of)
 Iraq
 Jordan
 Kazakhstan
 Kuwait
 Lebanon
 Libya
 Liechtenstein
 Morocco
 Palestinian National Authority
 Russian Federation
 Saudi Arabia
 Spain
 Syrian Arab Republic
 Tunisia
 Turkey

References
  1. "Agreement on the Conservation of Bats in Europe" (PDF). Eurobats. United Nations Environment Programme/Eurobats. 4 December 1991. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  2. "2nd Session of the Meeting of Parties: Resolution 2.5 – Geographical Scope of the Agreement" (PDF). Eurobats. United Nations Environment Programme/Eurobats. July 1998. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  3. "5th Session of the Meeting of Parties: Resolution 5.11 – Geographical Scope of the Agreement" (PDF). Eurobats. United Nations Environment Programme/Eurobats. September 2006. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  4. "6th Session of the Meeting of Parties: Resolution 6.3 – Geographical Scope of the Agreement" (PDF). Eurobats. United Nations Environment Programme/Eurobats. September 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  5. "8th Session of the Meeting of the Parties: Resolution 8.2 – Amendment of the Annex to the Agreement" (PDF). Eurobats. United Nations Environment Programme/Eurobats. October 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
  6. "Agreement on the Conservation of Populations of European Bats" (PDF). Eurobats. United Nations Environment Programme/Eurobats. May 2019. Retrieved 7 August 2019.
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