Nagoya Protocol
User of the Infrastructure have to agree to conduct the sampling and research according to the rules for Red List Species (https://www.iucnredlist.org/) and to follow Nagoya Protocol (https://www.cbd.int/abs/doc/protocol/nagoya-protocol-en.pdf)
"Animal Protection Act"
According to § 11 para.1 of the Animal Protection Act, an application for a permit must be submitted to the competent authority in the applicant's country of residence for animal experiments involving vertebrates and cephalopods.
Handling of "Animal by-prodcuts" (Biological samples)
Definition
Animal by-products are carcasses, parts of carcasses or products of animal origin that are not intended for human consumption. This includes biological sample material. This includes, in the context of our research:
- “Aquatic animals”
- Fish (Chondroichthyes, Osteichthyes)
- Molluscs (Mollusca)
- Crustaceans (Crustacea)
- (Marine) Mammals (Mammalia)
- Birds (Aves)
Live animals do not count as animal by-products. Separate regulations apply to the import of live animals. Due to EU regulations for animal by-products and customs regulations, AWI is obliged to comply with legal requirements both for import and further handling of biological samples, with the aim of avoiding a spread of risks to human and animal health. This concerns:
(3) the transfer of sample material in Germany and within the EU, or
(4) outside the EU, and
Registration is required in order to handle animal by-products. AWI sites are registered with the respective competent veterinary authorities:
- DE 04 012 0007 21 Bremerhaven,
- DE 01 056 0001 21 Helgoland,
- DE 01 054 0001 21 Sylt.
Competent veterinary authorities are:
- Lebensmittelüberwachungs-, Tierschutz und Veterinärdienst of the federal country of Bremen (LMTVet) in Bremen
- Veterinär- und Lebensmittelaufsicht of the Kreisverwaltung Pinneberg ibidem, and
- Veterinäramt, Fachdienst Veterinärwesen of the Kreisverwaltung Nordfriesland in Husum. The institutions mentioned under b) and c) are subordinate to the Ministry for Energy Transition, Agriculture, Environment, Nature and Digitalization (MELUND) in Kiel.
Implementation
(1) Import from international waters
For the landing of sample material in the sense of animal by-products from international waters, an import permit is required, which is applied for by the Logistics & Research Platforms Department in the Cargo Handling, Customs, Dangerous Goods Division at the veterinary authority on the basis of the freight and packing lists prepared on board and deposited at the border control point in connection with a release certificate, which must also be applied for. For this purpose, the required information on the samples obtained must be entered on board into AWI’s Expedition Interface System (EIS) by the participants no later than 10 working days before entering the port.[1]
The taxon that can be determined on board is sufficient for entry into EIS; if necessary, e.g. in the case of mixed catches that are not sorted on board, a summary description with higher-level taxa is also sufficient. A German or generic name or a trivial name preceding the Latin species and genus name is not mandatory, but, if available, helpful; e.g. for the border control point and the veterinary authority and facilitates there the assessment of the material.
Important for a smooth handling: The information on packages and samples entered in EIS must match those in the cold storage lists!
The stored information is retrieved from EIS via freight and packing lists by the Logistics & Research Platforms Department in the Cargo Handling, Customs, Dangerous Goods division and is required to carry out the approval procedure. No import is possible without approval and release certificate!
The import is carried out by the Logistics & Research Platforms Department via the border control point in Bremerhaven in connection with a (refrigerated) transport from the Polarstern to the AWI (building D and E). From there, the samples will be picked up by the cruise participants in consultation with the cruise leader or the representatives for refrigerated goods and dangerous goods of the cruise leg. For the collection of the samples the procedures as described under (3) and (4) apply.
A direct collection from on board is generally excluded. Should a special arrangement be necessary for comprehensible reasons in individual cases, this must be communicated to the Logistics & Research Platforms Department (logistik.zoll@awi.de) at least 10 working days prior to arrival. The import and border formalities as well as pick-up and transport notifications must then be arranged by the scientists dealing with the material themselves!
Important to know: AWI does not have any cooling facilities for sample material in the port storage area (Hafenlager) and cannot store samples in the free port area! Therefore, the required documents must be complete at least 10 days prior to arrival in port. Otherwise the samples cannot be imported.
Transport of samples, which are to be imported via international ports of call, is usually handled by agencies, which also request the documentation and take care of the further procedure. This must be arranged by the responsible scientist in consultation with the Logistics & Research Platforms Department (logistik.zoll@awi.de) at least 10 working days before the arrival in port.
(2) Import from EU (incl. EFTA) waters or landing from national waters
For landing of sample material in the sense of animal by-products from EU waters (including waters of EFTA countries) documentation and customs declaration are required.
[1] Should samples still be obtained until shortly before entry, the Logistics and Research Platforms Department (logistik.zoll@awi.de) should be informed about the status of the sample collection and the expected species composition at this time so that the procedure can already be initiated.