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Regional Seas Weekly News
A compilation of news, events, publications from the Regional Seas Programme and other sources.
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FROM THE REGIONAL SEAS CONVENTIONS AND ACTION PLANS (RSCAPs)
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COBSEA delivered a keynote address on the Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter (RAP MALI) during the virtual Malaysia – Australia Dialogue Series on Combatting Marine Plastic Pollution 2022 [Dialogue 1: Harmonising Marine Plastic Monitoring] on 10 August 2022. This Dialogue was jointly organised by the Maritime Institute of Malaysia (MIMA) together with the University of Queensland (UQ) Australia, and supported by the Australian Government & the Ministry of Environment and Water (KASA), Malaysia. The second Dialogue focusing on Technology and Innovation is planned for mid-September 2022.
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South Asia Co-operative Environment Programme (SACEP) and Ministry of Forests and Environment of Nepal jointly organised the Nepal National Stakeholder Consultation Workshop on Plastic free Rivers and Seas for South Asia Project ‘PLEASE Project’. Hon'ble Minister Mr.Pradeep Yadav, Ministry of Forests and Environment of Nepal was present as the chief guest and Dr Masumur Rahman Director General of SACEP attend as the guest of Honour while Dr. Pem Narayan Kandel, Environment secretary of Nepal presided over the inaugural Programme. Dr Rahman said that through this project, SACEP sincerely hope that......
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Mr. Pradeep Yadav, Hon'ble Forests and Environment Minister of Nepal and Dr Masumur Rahman Director General of SACEP conducted a bilateral meeting yesterday on 9 August 2022 at the secretariat in Kathmandu. Dr. Pem Narayan Kandel, Environment secretary of Nepal was present during the meeting. Dr Rahman briefed about the ongoing activities of SACEP and future event. They discussed about the upcoming Climate summit COP27, Plastic waste management and few other common environmental issues in South Asia region.
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The partnership between the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and the People’s Republic of China continues to grow from strength to strength, with the handover of China’s annual USD 200,000 contribution to the Pacific’s premier organisation for the protection of the environment. The People’s Republic of China has been a long-term partner of the Secretariat, providing financial assistance to bolster the work of the organisation annually since 1998. In 2017....
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The goal to effectively manage protected and conserved areas in the Pacific has taken an important step forward with the soft launch of the Comparative Analysis of Protected Area Management Effectiveness (PAME) evaluation tools for the region. PAME Evaluations are tools to assess how well protected and conserved areas are being managed, primarily the degree to which management is safeguarding values and achieving goals and objectives.
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The Ministry of Environment (MoE) has today signed two Letters of Agreement (LoA) with the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) to implement in Fiji, the By-catch and Integrated Ecosystem Management (BIEM) initiative supported through the Pacific-European Union Marine Partnership (PEUMP) programme as well as to implement the Pacific - European Union Waste Management (PacWastePlus) Programme. The PacWastePlus programme is funded by the European Union (EU) while the PEUMP programme is co-funded by the EU and the Government of Sweden.
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History is now in the making with Pacific Island representatives gathering in Suva, Fiji next week on the road to an international binding agreement on plastics. Our island region will establish its priorities before the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to negotiate a new binding global agreement covering the whole life cycle of plastics. This will help ensure our Pacific voice will be heard from the very beginning. The Pacific Regional Preparatory Workshop for the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee is funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Australian Aid, and is coordinated by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP).
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3rd SPREP Executive Board Meeting - 8-9 September, Samoa
The Executive Board of SPREP is comprised of the past, present and future Chairs of the SPREP Meeting, and representatives of SPREP’s Melanesian, Metropolitan, Micronesian, Polynesian and French speaking members.
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2nd part of the COBSEA IGM in Hanoi, Vietnam on 12 -13 October 2022
The evaluation of the implementation of COBSEA's Strategic Directions 2018-2022 and elements for a new (draft) Strategic Direction 2023-2027 will be presented during the COBSEA Intergovernmental Meeting 25 Part two (IGM 25.2)
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The first session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC1) to develop an Internationally legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, will take place in Punta del Este from 28 November to 2 December 2022.
The multi-stakeholder forum is planned to take place for the full day on 26 November, and regional consultations and bureau meeting to be held on 27 November. Following the practice of the ad hoc open-ended expert group (OEWG) meeting held in Dakar from 30 May to 1 June, the INC will be a hybrid meeting.
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UN Biodiversity Conference (COP 15) - 7 - 19 December , 2022 in Montreal, Canada
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LATEST COASTAL & MARINE NEWS
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Amidst calls for flexibility, openness and the spirit of compromise that prevailed in 1982, when the landmark “constitution for the oceans” was adopted, the new treaty will aim to address the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas of the ocean which are beyond the limits of States' maritime zones.The session, which runs until 26 August, was convened following a decision taken by the General Assembly in May and is expected to be the final in a series set in motion since 2018 to draft an international legally binding instrument under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction.. Read More>>
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A tiny Caribbean Island known as 'the flower of the ocean' was decimated by Hurricane Iota in 2020. Although the loss of human life was minimal, the impact on precious ecosystems deeply changed the perspective of its inhabitants. Two years later, they’re still working to restore their environmental treasures and preparing for whatever curveballs climate change might throw at them next. Read More>>
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On the island nation of Fiji, young people are working in solidarity with their elders, benefiting from their knowledge and experience to protect the fragile ecosystem. One such project involves young people conserving and protecting Fiji’s coral reef and the marine environment around the island. The programme, backed by the UN, seeks to marry the enthusiasm and drive of young people, with the wisdom and experience of older generations. Youth are learning age-old sustainable fishing techniques, as well as knowledge about living in harmony with the sea and nature, from their elders. Find out more here.
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The Northeast Pacific Deep-Sea Diversity Expedition 2022 returned to shore with new footage of underwater volcanoes, maps, and a large specimen collection following a three-week journey (7-28 June 2022) off the west coasts of Vancouver Island and Haida Gwaii, Canada. Owing to the region’s uniquely small, active, and nearshore tectonic plates, the concentration of seamounts, hydrothermal vents, and cold seeps in the Canadian Pacific are globally rare biodiversity hotspots..Read More>>
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The International Seabed Authority (ISA) launched a pioneering report, “Empowering Women from LDCs, LLDCs and SIDS in Deep-Sea Research,” on 30 June at the United Nations Ocean Conference in Lisbon, Portugal. The report provides detailed information resulting from the first ever gender mapping undertaken in the field of deep-sea research and related disciplines. The report also identifies the critical barriers faced by women scientists from least developed countries (LDCs), landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) and small island developing States (SIDS) to participate in deep-sea research and related fields and access leadership positions.
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The 27th session of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) Assembly elected 18 ISA Council members for 2023-2026. Together with the Legal and Technical Commission, the Council is one of ISA’s main bodies conducting the negotiations on the draft exploitation regulations. While the Assembly is less involved in the talks, the issue underpinned many of the discussions. The key role of the ISA is to develop a set of rules and procedures to regulate prospecting, exploration, and exploitation of minerals in the Area – “the seabed and ocean floor and the subsoil thereof, beyond the limits of national jurisdiction.” In accordance with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Area and its resources are the common heritage of humankind..Read More>>
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The Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions has published a report detailing existing mechanisms for the science-policy interface under the BRS Conventions, outlining possible synergies between the existing mechanisms and a future science-policy panel for chemicals and waste, and suggesting issues for stakeholders to consider in developing a new science-policy panel to contribute to sound chemicals and waste management and pollution prevention.. Read More>>
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With an estimated 8 million metric tons of plastic waste escaping to our oceans each year, plastic pollution adversely affects the environment, climate, and even our health. Many plastic products break down in the ocean and are ingested by marine wildlife. Scientists can study these organisms as potential bioindicators to measure how much plastic exists in different ocean regions and help assess the overall health of the marine environment. To advance these efforts, several research organizations, including the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), have conducted a meta-analysis, in which they statistically analyzed and combined current scientific literature to identify key marine species for monitoring plastic pollution in the North Pacific Ocean. The study provides a...Read More>>
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Two invasive blue crab species have recently settled in the Mediterranean.
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Both species are voracious predators that disrupt bottom habitats, shred fishers’ nets and ruin their catches. They’re also edible.
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Mediterranean countries are considering whether to target the invasive crabs to control them, or embrace and even protect them as a new socioeconomic resource for the future.
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Antarctic krill are one of the most abundant species in the world in terms of biomass, but scientists and conservationists are concerned about the future of the species due to overfishing, climate change impacts and other human activities.
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Krill fishing has increased year over year as demand rises for the tiny crustaceans, which are used as feed additives for global aquaculture and processed for krill oil.
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Experts have called on the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), the group responsible for protecting krill, to update its rules to better protect krill; others are calling for a moratorium on krill fishing.
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Antarctic krill play a critical role in maintaining the health of our planet by storing carbon and providing food for numerous species.
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Seagrass meadows are the fishing grounds of choice for many households in four Indo-Pacific countries, according to a new study that calls for better-informed management of these often-overlooked marine habitats. It found that small-scale fishers in 147 coastal villages in four tropical countries — Cambodia, Tanzania, Sri Lanka and Indonesia — rely primarily on seagrass meadows, saying these habitats are reliable, suitable, familiar, and accessible. The study, published in June in the journal Ocean & Coastal Management, noted that this finding should prompt a rethink of general perceptions of small-scale fisheries. Read More>>
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Cities all over the world are home to iconic parks. Central Park in New York City. Hyde Park in London. The Imperial Palace Gardens in Tokyo. These expanses of green help city dwellers in many ways – regulating temperatures, cleaning the air, and providing space to connect with nature. But there are not many cities that host a national park. This is the case in Abidjan, the capital city of Cote d’Ivoire. Once a small fishing village, it is now a vibrant metropolis with more than 5 million residents. It is also home to Banco National Park, a....Read More>>
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The Regional Seas Strategic Directions (RSSD) 2022-2025 aims to more effectively mainstream the conservation and sustainable use of oceans into policies and programmes, harmonize methodologies for tracking progress, and foster an integrated response to combat the ecological, climate, pollution, and health crisis for achieving long-term health of the ocean, as well as the people who rely on the ocean for subsistence or otherwise.
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LATEST PUBLICATIONS, STUDIES & RESEARCH ARTICLES
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The UNEP Regional Seas Programme (RSP) is UNEP’s most important regional mechanism for conservation of the marine and coastal environment since its establishment in 1974. The Programme aims to address the accelerating degradation of the world’s oceans and coastal areas through a shared approach, by engaging neighbouring countries in comprehensive and specific actions to protect their shared and connected ocean. It is an action-oriented programme that brings together a broad range of stakeholders including governments, scientific communities, intergovernmental organisations, non-governmental organisations, private sector and civil societies, to address ocean-related issues. Today, 146 countries participate in 18 Regional Seas programmes, and most of the programmes have adopted a regional action plan underpinned by a legal framework in the form of a regional convention and associated protocols on specific issues. The Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plans outline coordinated actions to address specific environmental concerns.
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If you have any news, events, announcements and publications related to coastal and marine issues that you would like to be included in the weekly newsletter, send us an email on: regionalseas@un.org
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