The three pillars of protected species law
Protected species law in the Georgian system rests on three interconnected norms: environmental load norms and quotas, the licensing of wild flora and fauna, and the Red List and the Red Book. Together these instruments answer the question: to what extent, how and for which species use is permitted.
Environmental load norms and quotas
In the use and development of natural ecosystems, landscapes and other territories, maximum permissible norms of their load are established. These norms include quotas for the use of natural resources, which are set at the state level taking into account the principles of sustainable development; quotas for the use of individual species of natural resources are set at regional and local levels. The ministry develops and approves the environmental load norms once every 5 years, by the statute on environmental load norms. The idea of the quota is simple: the use of a species is inadmissible in a volume exceeding its self-reproduction.
The two-tier quota system has special practical significance: at the state level general resource use quotas are set in accordance with the principles of sustainable development, while the use of individual species is addressed at the regional and local levels — thus the legislator reconciles national policy with local specifics. The five-year cycle by which the ministry develops and approves the norms is also a renewal mechanism: changes in natural conditions may cause a review of quotas, and activity planning must take this horizon into account.
Licensed use and prohibitions
For the self-reproduction of wild plant and animal resources and the maintenance of biodiversity, their removal from the environment is strictly limited and subject to licensing — apart from the granting of the right to prepare timber by auction through the forest management body under the Forest Code. The licence completes the quota at the level of the specific operation: the quota represents the ceiling, and the licence the legal means of acting within that ceiling.
At the same time, any action that may harm the world of wild plants and animals, habitats, breeding areas and migration routes is prohibited. This norm is broader than the licensing framework — it can also affect activity that does not directly involve removal but damages the habitat. The rules of protection and use of wild flora and fauna are established by Georgian legislation. The relationship between licence and quota is shown in the text of the law itself: removal is strictly limited and subject to licensing — limitation points to the quantitative ceiling, licensing to the procedural assessment. Together they mean that the use of a species is lawful only if it satisfies both the conditions of the ceiling and of authorization. The prohibition stands as a third layer between the two and is unconditional: harm to habitats, breeding areas and migration routes is justified neither by a quota nor by a licence.
The Red List and the Red Book
Wild animals and wild plants under threat of extinction are registered in the Red List and the Red Book of Georgia. Registration is the legal recognition of a special status of the species: it requires particular care in matters of removal and also directs the relevant permit and licence practice. The procedure for compiling the Red List and the Red Book is determined by Georgian legislation. The two-tier system of the Red List and the Red Book is descriptive: the list is a catalogue of species, while the book describes them together with the grounds for special attention. The practical result is that the decision-maker on use considers, along with the species' status, its ecological context as well.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are frequent questions on protected species.
What are environmental-load norms?
Permissible limit norms for the use of natural ecosystems and territories; they include resource-use quotas — set at state level, and for individual species at regional and local levels; the norms are approved by the ministry once every 5 years.
What rule governs the removal of wild plants and animals?
It is strictly limited and subject to licensing, save the timber-auction case under the Forest Code; actions harming habitats, reproduction areas and migration routes are prohibited.
Where are endangered species registered?
In Georgia’s Red List and Red Book.
How We Help on Legal.ge
For any project touching wild nature, the logical sequence of assessment is: first determine whether the object affects a species entered in the Red List or the Red Book; then — whether the planned action is a removal from the environment and requires a licence; and finally — how the activity is restricted by the quotas of the current environmental load norms. The answer to each of these questions changes the legal format of the project. The practical conclusion of this system is that the use of protected species is possible only under a double restriction: quantitative (the quota) and procedural (the licence). At the same time, the protection of habitats, breeding areas and migration routes applies with respect to every kind of action — meaning that the licensee's responsibility extends not only to the individuals removed but also to the living environment of the species.