Alien species that threaten ecosystems, habitats or species (Article 8 (h
)): further consideration of gaps and inconsistencies in the international
regulatory framework
The Conference of the Parties
1. Welcomes of the report of the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group on
Gaps and Inconsistencies in the International Regulatory Framework in Relation
to Invasive Alien Species (UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/11/INF/4), expresses its gratitude to
the Government of New Zealand for their financial, organizational and technical
support for this work, and expresses its gratitude to the Chair and
members of the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group for their work;
2. Welcomes the inter-sessional work of the Global Invasive Species
Programme and the Executive Secretary towards the development of a joint programme
of work on invasive alien species referred to in paragraph 26 (e) of decision
VI/23, 1 /
and expresses appreciation to the Global Invasive Species Programme
for its leadership role in addressing invasive alien species;
3. Welcomes the development of the biodiversity and invasive alien
species module of the United Nations Environment Programme’s project on Issue-Based
Modules for Coherent Implementation of Biodiversity-related Conventions, as
a helpful tool for implementation;
4. Encourages Parties to build capacity for action at the national
level for addressing the various pathways for introduction and spread of invasive
alien species, and appeals to funding institutions and development agencies
to explore and consider options for providing additional funding to support
developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and small
island developing States, as well as countries with economies in transition,
and countries that are centres of origin and centres of genetic diversity,
to assist in the improved prevention, rapid response and implementation of
management measures to address threats of invasive alien species;
5. Notes that, in addition to capacity-building at national level,
there is also a need for capacity-building at subregional, regional and global
levels in order to promote consistency and mutual supportiveness of measures
taken to address alien invasive species, and invites donors and financial
institutions to support capacity-building initiatives at these levels to assist
Parties in effectively controlling the spread of existing invasive alien species
and preventing further introductions;
6. Notes the need for the provision of additional funding by the financial
mechanism of the Convention to support capacity-building for developing countries,
in particular the least developed and small island developing States among
them, and countries with economies in transition, to prevent or minimize the
risks of the dispersal and establishment of invasive alien species at the national,
subregional, or regional levels;
7. Further recognizes that collaboration among international bodies
and instruments is important in the context of addressing issues related to
invasive alien species, and that such collaboration requires adequate resources;
8. Encourages Parties to ensure close inter-agency collaboration at
the national and regional levels among the various sectors and interest-holders
relevant to the introduction, control and management of invasive alien species,
for example through the establishment of national coordination committees;
9. Notes that actions to address invasive alien species need to be
taken at the international, regional, national and/or subnational levels, emphasizes the
need to promote consistency among actions and efforts at the various levels, also
emphasizes the appropriateness of regional and subregional approaches in
particular, and encourages the development, as appropriate, of regional
guidance under appropriate regional bodies or institutions to address particular
gaps in the international regulatory framework;
10. Reiterates the importance of information-sharing as specified,
for example, in paragraphs 27 and 28 of decision VI/23, 1 / and
the need for financial resources to take full advantage of such information-sharing
mechanisms including the clearing-house mechanism of the Convention;
11. Further reiterates the call to Parties, other Governments and
relevant organizations to share their experiences in addressing invasive alien
species, including management and control efforts as specified in paragraph
25 of decision VI/23, 1 / and the request to the Executive Secretary
to make this information available through the clearing-house mechanism and
other means, as called for in paragraphs 25, 26, and 28 of decision VI/23;
1
/
12. Urges Parties and other Governments to communicate to potential
importing countries relevant information about particular species that are
subject to export and are known to be potentially invasive, through, for example,
web-based databases, alert lists or other appropriate information-sharing mechanisms
at global and regional levels, and to provide information that is relevant
for risk analysis and other proactive measures as appropriate to prevent or
minimize effects of invasive alien species in other countries, in accordance
with Article 3 of the Convention;
13. Encourages Parties and other Governments to increase communication
and public awareness about the environmental, social and economic impacts of
the introduction of invasive alien species according to Guiding Principle 6
contained in the annex to decision VI/23; 1 /
14. Requests the Executive Secretary to consult with relevant international
bodies and instruments, such as the International Plant Protection Convention,
the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), the Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations, and the World Trade Organization, taking into account
the observations of the report of the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group (UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/11/INF/4),
regarding whether and how to address the lack of international standards covering
invasive alien species, in particular animals, that are not pests of plants
under the International Plant Protection Convention, and to report on the results
of these consultations for consideration by the Subsidiary Body on Scientific,
Technical and Technological Advice and by the Conference of the Parties at
its ninth meeting;
15. Requests the Executive Secretary to communicate the present decision
to the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
to facilitate its being taken into account, as appropriate, by Parties to the
Convention on Climate Change in framing and implementing the decisions under
that Convention;
16. Invites Parties and other Governments to share, through the clearing-house
mechanism and other means, national experiences in dealing with invasive alien
species, in particular animals and their parasites, introduced or spread through
various conveyances (e.g., vessels, floating timber, equipment and machinery,
household goods, packaging and containers, waste materials, air transport vessels,
tourist vessels, etc.), including any risk assessments or risk management measures
that have been carried out for particular species or pathways;
17. Encourages Parties and other Governments to organize training
and promote education and awareness raising of border control officials and
other relevant persons regarding invasive alien species, recognizing that such
activities will require adequate resources;
18. Encourages relevant regional bodies and institutions to develop
regional guidance for particular conveyances as pathways for introduction and
spread of invasive alien species;
19. Invites relevant bodies and institutions, such as the Global Invasive
Species Programme, the Working Group on Ballast and Other Shipping Vectors
of the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, and the Working
Group on Non-Indigenous Species of the North Pacific Marine Science Organization,
to further study conveyance pathways for introduction and spread of invasive
alien species, and to conduct risk assessments for potential future introductions;
20. Encourages regional bodies and conventions governing inland water
or marine and coastal ecosystems, such as transboundary inland water management
bodies and the regional seas conventions and action plans, to consider developing
cooperative arrangements such as voluntary certification schemes for aquaculture,
fish stocking and other activities that involve introductions and transfers
of live aquatic organisms, to address risks of invasive alien species, taking
into account existing efforts such as those of the Global Aquaculture Alliance;
21. Urges Parties and other Governments to implement the Code of Practice
on the Introduction and Transfers of Marine Organisms of the International
Council for the Exploration of the Sea, the Code of Conduct on Responsible
Fisheries of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and
Article 196 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea;
22. Urges Parties and other Governments to ratify and implement the
1997 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International
Watercourses; 2 /
23. Invites Parties to develop and implement national and regional
programmes of work, such as those under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation,
for the sustainable management of aquaculture as well as for the control of
aquatic invasive species;
24. Invites Parties and other Governments to promote aquaculture of
native species with the aim to avoid accidental introduction of alien species
and their parasites;
25. Urges Parties and other Governments to ratify and implement the
International Convention on the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water
and Sediments as soon as possible;
26. Urges Parties and other Governments to address, in their national
legislation, the issue of domestic translocation of ballast water, by vessels
requiring equivalent compliance with but not covered by the International Convention
on the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, as stipulated
in the guideline for equivalent compliance for small craft which is under consideration
by the Marine Environmental Protection Committee of the International Maritime
Organization;
27. Urges Parties and other Governments to increase the degree of
communication and coordination between national agencies responsible for inputs
to and implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity and International
Maritime Organization;
28. Invites the regional seas conventions and action plans to support
implementation of the International Convention on the Control and Management
of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, and to encourage regional harmonization
in implementation;
29. Encourages Parties and other Governments to implement controls
at national level, for example through appropriate measures (e.g., regulations
and standards), on marine biofouling as a pathway for introduction and spread
of invasive alien species, including for recreational vessels;
30. Encourages harmonization of national legislation within regions,
to avoid transferring risks associated with marine biofouling between nations,
including through regional mechanisms such as the regional seas conventions
and action plans;
31. Encourages Parties to ratify and implement the 2001 Convention
on the Control of Harmful Anti-fouling Systems on Ships;
32. Reiterates its call to the International Maritime Organization
regarding the need to address the issue of hull-fouling;
33. Encourages Parties and other Governments to raise the issue of
marine biofouling as a matter of urgency with the Marine Environment Protection
Committee of the International Maritime Organization and at the Antarctic Treaty
Consultative Meeting;
34. Welcomes resolution A35-19 of the Assembly of the International
Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) on invasive alien species, and invites the
International Civil Aviation Organization to address invasive alien species
as a matter of urgency;
35. Requests the Executive Secretary to collaborate with the secretariat
of the International Civil Aviation Organization, as appropriate, to support
any efforts to develop guidance or standards according to resolution A35-19;
36. Encourages the secretariats of the International Civil Aviation
Organization and Asia‑Pacific Economic Cooperation, in addressing the issue
of invasive alien species, to coordinate with other relevant bodies, including
the secretariats of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the International
Plant Protection Convention;
37. Encourages Parties and other Governments to promote collaboration
at the national level among relevant agencies responsible for matters of invasive
alien species and/or civil air transport (e.g., civil aviation, transport,
customs, trade, plant protection, environment) so that all relevant issues
are raised through national participation in the International Civil Aviation
Organization;
38. Encourages relevant United Nations bodies, in collaboration with
the Convention on Biological Diversity and relevant organizations, to develop
and promulgate guidance or codes of practice to address the issue of introduction
and spread of invasive alien species associated with military operations or
aid including peace-keeping operations;
39. Encourages Parties and other Governments to ensure that they promote
good practice in relation to invasive alien species in any military-aid or
joint exercises, and to develop procedures and build capacity among their military
forces to avoid the introduction of potentially invasive species into new areas,
taking into account relevant international guidance, and to detect and rectify
any problems of invasive alien species created during military operations;
40. Encourages relevant international bodies and organizations to
develop international codes of practice for preventing and minimizing potential
spread of invasive alien species on equipment, supplies and vehicles associated
with emergency relief, aid and response efforts, and to develop procedures
for ensuring that assessments to determine aid requirements include identification
of any issues of invasive alien species;
41. Encourages the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian
Affairs, the World Food Programme and other relevant bodies to develop codes
of practice or guidelines such as the IUCN Guidelines for Restoration of Tsunami-Affected
Areas for dealing with cases where invasive alien species are dispersed following
a natural disaster or event;
42. Urges Governments and other donors to take measures to prevent
and minimize the introduction and spread of invasive alien species as part
of their emergency relief, aid and any response efforts, and to take into account
any relevant codes of practice or guidelines that may be developed at international
level, or national legislation as appropriate, in their national aid operations
or in the operations of non-governmental organizations within their country;
43. Encourages United Nations bodies and other organizations involved
in international development assistance, in cooperation with the Convention
on Biological Diversity and other relevant bodies or agreements, to develop
or adopt existing procedures or codes of practice to minimize the risks associated
with the use, dispersal or establishment of invasive alien species, taking
into account relevant national codes of practice or other guidance;
44. Urges Parties and other Governments to consider, through collaboration
with biosecurity, biodiversity and aid organizations, national controls or
codes of practice to address invasive alien species in development assistance
efforts;
45. Urges Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to
raise awareness among scientific research organizations of existing measures
to control the spread of invasive alien species, and to put in place measures
to prevent or minimize the risks of introduction and spread of invasive alien
species associated with scientific research activities;
46. Encourages relevant international and regional organizations,
including the Future Harvest (CGIAR) centres, Botanic Gardens Conservation
International and the International Union of Forestry Research Organizations,
as well as professional societies, to develop codes of practice for preventing
and minimizing the risk of introduction and spread of invasive alien species
associated with scientific‑research activities, and to carry out risk assessments
as appropriate on proposed species introductions associated with such scientific‑research
activities, recognizing the need to avoid duplication of efforts, and encourages the
Global Invasive Species Programme to review and make available existing information
in this regard;
47. Requests the Executive Secretary, in consultation with relevant
bodies and organizations, to identify existing guidelines on scientific research
that address invasive alien species, and to disseminate them through the clearing-house
mechanism;
48. Emphasizes the need for taxonomic studies to deal with invasive
alien species, and encourages implementation of the planned activity
on invasive alien species within the programme of work of the Global Taxonomy
Initiative;
49. Decides to consider, as appropriate, in its future work relating
to sustainable tourism, the issue of tourism as a pathway for introduction
and spread of invasive alien species;
50. Urges Parties and other Governments, and regional bodies where
appropriate, to take measures to address the issue of tourism as a pathway
for introduction and spread of invasive alien species, taking into account
the Guidelines on Biodiversity and Tourism Development adopted in decision
VII/14, with particular emphasis on tourism in sites of high conservation value;
51. Encourages the World Tourism Organization, the International Air
Transport Association, and other relevant international organizations to promote
education and public awareness, for example through development of codes of
practice, regarding the role of tourism as a pathway for introduction and spread
of invasive alien species;
52. Encourages relevant Government departments, consumer protection
groups, industry, trade and shipment organizations, and other relevant organizations
such as the Universal Postal Union and the Global Express Association, to raise
awareness with consumers, including through Internet sites that facilitate
transactions or may otherwise be visited by consumers, and to further study,
as appropriate, current safe disposal measures for imported alien species,
with a view to considering development of guidance or codes of practice regarding
trade in pets, aquarium species and plant seeds, in particular disposal and
discard of such species;
53. Urges Parties and other Governments to take measures, as appropriate
and consistent with their national and international obligations, to control
import or export of pets, aquarium species, live bait, live food or plant seeds,
that pose risks as invasive alien species;
54. Further urges Parties and other Governments to take action, as
appropriate and consistent with their national and international obligations,
to prevent and minimize introductions of known invasive species into the wild,
including through measures addressing disposal and discard of such species;
55. Urges Parties, other Governments and relevant organizations to
evaluate and take appropriate measures (e.g., develop guidance or codes of
practice regarding the trade and use of biocontrol agents) at national, regional
and global levels to address the potential risks of biocontrol agents as invasive
alien species, taking into account the work of relevant international bodies
and agreements such as the International Plant Protection Convention, as well
as the experience of countries at national level;
56. Encourages the animal breeding industry, as well as regional and
international organizations such as IUCN and the World Association of Zoos
and Aquariums, to promote sharing of best practices regarding the movement
of alien animal species for ex situ breeding;
57. Urges Parties and other Governments to take measures as appropriate
and consistent with their national and international obligations, based for
example on risk assessment, to control movements of animals used for ex
situ breeding, including controlling the movements of fish between water
bodies and drainage basins as well as containing the movements of animals within
safari parks and zoos;
58. Encourages relevant regional and international organizations and
bodies to require impact assessments to ensure consideration of invasive alien
species issues within water transfer schemes and navigation canal projects,
and to develop technical advice on methods to prevent or minimize the introduction
or spread of invasive alien species through canals and pipes;
59. Urges Parties and other Governments, as a matter of priority,
to implement activity 1.4.4 of the revised programme of work on inland waters
(decision VII/4, annex), (“Within the context of transboundary catchments,
watershed and river-basin management, and especially in relation to inter‑basin
water transfers, provide appropriate mechanisms to prevent the spread of invasive
alien species”);
60. Encourages Parties, other Governments, and regional bodies to
develop procedures and/or controls to ensure that cross-border impacts of potentially
invasive alien species are considered as part of national and regional decision-making
processes, taking into account already existing procedures and controls for
invasive alien species that are pests of plants under the International Plant
Protection Convention;
61. Urges Parties and other Governments to share information on domestic
occurrences of alien species that may be invasive elsewhere, through appropriate
information-sharing mechanisms;
62. Urges Parties and other Governments to be proactive in preventing
the introduction and spread of invasive alien species within their territories,
for example by offering to help neighbouring States to deal with particular
alien species that may cross borders;
63. Encourages Parties to take into account, as appropriate, the issue
of invasive alien species with respect to World Heritage sites or other such
sites;
64. Encourages Parties, other Governments and relevant international
bodies to ensure that relevant laws and provisions, such as those related to
conservation, do not inadvertently constrain the use of appropriate measures
to address invasive alien species;
65. Encourages Parties and other Governments to raise the issue of
invasive alien species at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting, and to
support the development of measures to address threats of invasive alien species
in the Antarctic Treaty area;
66. Encourages Parties to the Antarctic Treaty to consider improving the
controls contemplated under the 1991 Protocol on Environmental Protection to
the Antarctic Treaty;
67. Encourages relevant bodies and organizations to promote clarification
and common understanding of terminology related to invasive alien species,
for example through the development of interpretive guidance or through collaborative
workshops involving multiple sectors;
68. Encourages Parties and other Governments to facilitate common
understanding of terminology through collaboration and communication among
relevant agencies, and through appropriate design of training and operational
materials;
69. Requests the Executive Secretary, in collaboration with relevant
organizations, to compile a glossary of terms used in various forums in relation
to invasive alien species, as requested in paragraph 28 (b) of decision
VI/23, 1 / and to make that list available through the clearing-house
mechanism;
70. Further requests the Executive Secretary to include the issue
of terminology in joint work plans with other secretariats;
71. Requests the Executive Secretary, in preparation for the in-depth
review of ongoing work on invasive alien species that will take place at the
ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (as specified in decision VII/31
on the multi-year programme of work) to review implementation of all decisions
1
/ related to invasive alien species on the basis of inter alia the third
national report and the views and experiences submitted by Parties, other Governments
and relevant international organizations not later than six months prior to
the ninth meeting of the Conference of the Parties, and to report on that review
to the Conference of the Parties at its ninth meeting.
1 / One representative entered
a formal objection during the process leading to the adoption of decision VI/23
and underlined that he did not believe that the Conference of the Parties could
legitimately adopt a motion or a text with a formal objection in place. A few
representatives expressed reservations regarding the procedure leading to the
adoption of this decision (see UNEP/CBD/COP/6/20, paras. 294-324).
2 / General Assembly Resolution
51/229 of 21 May 1997, annex.
