1st meeting of the AEWA Svalbard Pink-footed Goose International Working Group

The first meeting of the AEWA Svalbard Pink-footed Goose International Working Group (AEWA SPfG IWG) took place on the 23rd April 2013 in Copenhagen, hosted by the Danish Nature Agency.

This momentous meeting, for European waterbird management, was held to discuss and agree on the strategy and actions needed to implement the International Species Management Plan (ISMP) for the Svalbard population of the Pink-footed Goose. The ISMP is the first European test case of an adaptive flyway management plan which sets out to manage a population potentially threatening sensitive ecosystems, on its breeding grounds in Svalbard, and causing conflicts with agricultural interests, along its migration route, whilst ensuring that the population maintains its favourable conservation status.  The plan details a number of objectives aimed to collaboratively manage the population size of the Svalbard Pink-footed Goose following the principles of adaptive management. to secure its living conditions and habitats along its flyway, whilst ensuring that hunting of the species, in Denmark and Norway, is sustainable.

For full details of the meeting and the decisions taken and further actions assigned please see the attached meeting report (right).

All meeting documents are also available on the AEWA website or contact the Coordination Unit.