Retired sections: paragraphs 1 and 3-8.
Progress report on the implementation of the programme of
work on the biological diversity of inland water ecosystems
(implementation of decision IV/4)
The Conference of the Parties,
Recognizing the need for continued cooperation between the Convention
on Biological Diversity and other conventions and bodies dealing with
different aspects of inland water biological diversity,
1. Takes notes of the various ways and means to implement the
programme of work and obstacles in implementing some aspects of the work plan
of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice, as
contained in the note by the Executive Secretary on the subject prepared for
the fifth meeting of the Subsidiary Body (UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/5/6), and requests
the Executive Secretary to report to it on these matters before the seventh
meeting of the Conference of Parties as part of the review of the programme
of work on the biological diversity of inland water ecosystems by the
Subsidiary Body at its eighth meeting;
2. Endorses the proposed joint work plan for the period 2000-2001 of
the Convention on Biological Diversity and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat
(UNEP/CBD/SBSTTA/5/INF/12), which includes, inter alia, a River Basin
Initiative, encourages Parties, other Governments and relevant bodies to
support and participate in the Initiative, and stresses that Parties to the
Convention on Biological Diversity that are not Parties to the Ramsar
Convention shall not be disadvantaged in the workings and implementation of
the joint work plan;
3. Encourages Parties to address the lack of information on the
status of inland water biological diversity as a basis for future decisions
on inland water at the national level and to include this information in
their national reports;
4. Requests the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and
Technological Advice to consider the recommendations contained in the
forthcoming report of the World Commission on Dams, to be published in
November 2000, and, as appropriate, to recommend to the Conference of the
Parties at its sixth meeting the introduction of suitable elements into the
programme of work on the biological diversity of inland water ecosystems;
5. Further requests the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and
Technological Advice to include in its review before the seventh meeting of
the Conference of Parties advice on the further elaboration and refinement of
the programme of work on the biological diversity of inland water ecosystems,
having due regard to the issues relating, inter alia, to water supply, land
use and tenure, pollution, alien invasive species, the effects of El Niño,
and environmental impact assessment;
6. Requests the Executive Secretary to compile systematically
information on the implementation of the programme of work on the biological
diversity of inland water ecosystems, including the report of the World
Commission on Dams, for dissemination through the clearing-house mechanism,
and to report on his efforts as part of the review of that programme of work.
that the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice
will carry out before the seventh meeting of the Conference of Parties;
7. Invites relevant organizations and activities, in particular the
Global International Waters Assessment, to contribute to the assessment of
inland water biological diversity and to integrate a biological diversity
component fully in their methodology protocols;
8. Urges the implementation of capacity-building measures for
developing and implementing national and sectoral plans for the conservation
and sustainable use of inland water ecosystems, including comprehensive
assessments of the biological diversity of inland water ecosystems, and
capacity-building programmes for monitoring the implementation of the
programme of work and the trends in inland water biological diversity, and
for information-gathering and dissemination among the riparian communities.
