Information

Recalling that the Conference of the Parties decided to address, at its second meeting, advice from the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice on the scientific, technical and technological aspects of the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biological diversity,

Being deeply concerned at the serious threats to marine and coastal biological diversity caused by factors including physical alteration, destruction and degradation of habitats, pollution, invasion of alien species, and over-exploitation of living marine and coastal resources,

1. Takes note of recommendation I/8 on scientific, technical and technological aspects of the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biological diversity, adopted by the first meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice, held in Paris at the headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, from 4 to 8 September 1995, and;

(a) Affirms that it represents a solid basis for future elaboration of the issues presented;

(b) Supports the recommendations in paragraphs 10-19 of recommendation I/8, subject to Annex I of the present decision and its further elaboration by the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice and the Conference of the Parties;

(c) Reaffirms the importance of future work by the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice to provide a balanced perspective on the remaining issues presented by the recommendations in I/8 and Annex I of the present decision relevant to the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biodiversity;

2. Encourages the use of integrated marine and coastal area management as the most suitable framework for addressing human impacts on marine and coastal biological diversity and for promoting conservation and sustainable use of this biodiversity;

3. Encourages Parties to establish and/or strengthen, where appropriate, institutional, administrative, and legislative arrangements for the development of integrated management of marine and coastal ecosystems, plans and strategies for marine and coastal areas, and their integration within national development plans;

4. Takes note of the recently finalized Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, the Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 Relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks, and the Washington Declaration and Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities, and supports their implementation, including that by Parties, in ways that are consistent with, and conform to, the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity;

5. Welcomes the International Coral Reef Initiative as a means to address threats to coral reefs and related ecosystems and encourages participation in International Coral Reef Initiative activities to implement its Framework for Action;

6. Reaffirms that under Article 25 the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice is the only scientific, technical and technological authority under the Convention to provide advice to the Conference of the Parties;

7. Instructs the Executive Secretary to provide, in accordance with Annex II, the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice with scientific, technical, and technological advice and options for recommendations to the Conference of the Parties in further elaborating the recommendations contained in recommendation I/8, with the exception of paragraphs 3 and 4;

8. Offers the Executive Secretary the following guidance for conducting the work described in paragraph 6:

(a) Solicit input from all Parties and, as appropriate, from other countries and relevant bodies;

(b) Establish, on the basis of country input, a roster of experts with specialization appropriate to the work described in paragraph 6;

(c) The roster will draw upon expertise from scientific, technical, technological, social, management, economic, policy, legal, and indigenous and traditional knowledge;

(d) Convene, as appropriate, meetings of experts, drawn from the roster to support the Secretariat in advancing the work described in paragraph 6. Each meeting shall be for a duration of no longer than five days, and shall be comprised of no more than 15 experts with due regard to geographical representation and to the special conditions of least-developed countries and small island developing States;

9. Welcomes the offer from Indonesia to be host country for the first such meeting of Experts on Marine and Coastal Biological Diversity;

10. Decides to forward this decision and its annexes to the next session of the Commission on Sustainable Development for its information when considering its review of Agenda 21, chapter 17, on oceans;

11. Decides to forward this decision and annexes to the Global Environment Facility, other funding agencies and other relevant international bodies, to be taken into account in considering activities related to the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biological diversity;

12. Requests the Executive Secretary, in consultation with the United Nations Office for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, to undertake a study of the relationship between the Convention on Biological Diversity and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea with regard to the conservation and sustainable use of genetic resources on the deep seabed, with a view to enabling the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice to address at future meetings, as appropriate, the scientific, technical, and technological issues relating to bio-prospecting of genetic resources on the deep seabed;

13. Invites international and regional bodies responsible for legal instruments, agreements and programmes which address activities relevant to the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biodiversity, including the United Nations General Assembly, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Maritime Organization, the United Nations Office for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization including its Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the Commission on Sustainable Development, the International Coral Reef Initiative, regional fisheries bodies, migratory species agreements, secretariats of regional agreements for the conservation of the marine environment and other relevant international and regional organizations and institutions, to review their programmes with a view to improving existing measures and developing new actions which promote conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity, taking into account the recommendations for action by the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity adopted by the Conference of the Parties at its second meeting, and provide information on their actions on a regular basis to the Conference of the Parties and, in a first instance, as soon as possible through the Executive Secretary. Furthermore, these various institutions are invited to cooperate with the Conference of the Parties through the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice in planning and implementation of programmes affecting marine and coastal biological diversity, so as to reduce any unnecessary duplication or gaps in coverage;

14. Decides to request the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice to carry out a summary review at its next meeting of the first report from the Executive Secretary and to submit in its report to the Conference of the Parties its recommendation on the work of the Executive Secretary.

(i) Some delegations indicated their concern that paragraphs 10-19 were unbalanced in that they over-emphasized fishery issues, rather than some other issues such as pollution. Other delegations had an interest in highlighting the impacts of unsustainable fishing activities on marine and coastal biodiversity.

(ii) In relation to paragraph 10, crucial components of integrated marine and coastal area management are relevant sectoral activities, such as construction and mining in coastal areas, mariculture, mangrove management, tourism, recreation, fishing practices and land-based activities, including watershed management. Parties should, where appropriate and practical, prevent physical alteration, destruction and degradation of vital habitats and pursue restoration of degraded habitats, including spawning areas, nurseries of stocks of living marine resources, bearing in mind the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity and the need to provide a balanced approach to the use and conservation of marine and coastal biological diversity.

(iii) Parties are encouraged to undertake and exchange information on demonstration projects as practical examples of integrated marine and coastal area management.

(iv) In relation to paragraph 11, critical habitats for living marine resources should be an important criterion for the selection of marine and coastal protected areas, within the framework of integrated marine and coastal area management, taking into consideration the objectives of the Convention on Biological Diversity. Conservation measures should emphasize the protection of ecosystem functioning, in addition to protecting specific stocks.

(v) In reference to paragraph 12, the present mono-species approach to modelling and assessment should be augmented by an ecosystem process-oriented approach, based on research of ecosystem processes and functions, with an emphasis on identifying ecologically critical processes that consider the spatial dimension of these processes. Models of ecosystem processes should be developed through trans-disciplinary scientific groups (ecologists, oceanographers, economists, and fisheries experts) and be applied in the development of sustainable land and coastal resource use practices.

(vi) Paragraph 13refersto thedraftFood andAgricultureOrganization of theUnited Nations Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. The Code was adopted by the 28th session of the Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in October 1995. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is now undertaking the development of technical guidelines for the implementation of the Code. The Conference of the Parties can offer the technical expertise of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice in the elaboration and implementation of these guidelines, in line with the objectives and provisions of the Convention on Biological Diversity.

(vii) In relation to paragraph 14(a), the inclusion of subsidies was contentious. Some delegates stressed that the issue of subsidies was politically sensitive, with potential trade implications. It was noted that these issues address one of the underlying causes of biological diversity loss, viz, the result of over-fishing, and this consideration remained an important recommendation from the report of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice. It was also noted that there were a variety of other subsidies which had impacts on the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biological diversity. The Executive Secretary is entitled to evaluate these aspects using a meeting of experts. Some delegations argued that the phrase "subsidies for fisheries" appeared ambiguous. Government subsidies related to fishing activities have a great variety in their modalities. In addition, subsidies should not be evaluated alone. Evaluation of subsidies for fisheries should be conducted in relation to, or in conjunction with, considerations of fisheries management. It would be most appropriate to examine the various existing subsidies in the light of Article 11, which refers to economically and socially sound incentive measures.

(viii) Also, in relation to paragraph 14, cooperation between regional fisheries bodies and regional organizations for protection and conservation of the marine environment should be promoted.

(ix) In relation to paragraph 15, the Parties should enhance and improve the knowledge regarding the genetic structure of the local populations of marine species subjected to stock enhancement and sea-ranching activities. Considering that the captive-bred populations are likely to interact genetically and ecologically with wild populations, this knowledge should be used in the management of breeding stocks according to sound genetic principles that take into account the use of local populations for stock selection, minimum breeding numbers and the renewal frequency of the breeding stock from the wild population.

(x) Mariculture(paragraph15)isassumed to includeculture-based fisheriesand isdefined here to be aquaculture in marine or brackish water. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, "aquaculture is the farming of aquatic organisms including fish, molluscs, crustaceans and aquatic plants. Farming implies some form of intervention in the rearing process to enhance production, such as regular stocking, feeding, protection from predators, etc. Farming also implies individual or corporate ownership of the stock being cultivated". Although the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations requires "ownership of the stock being cultivated" in its definition, no such restriction is adopted here for the purpose of this document.

(xi) Some Parties thought paragraph 15(I)(e) would be better expressed as "because of the difficulties of complete containment, introduction of alien species, products of selective breeding, and living modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology that may have adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biodiversity should be responsibly conducted using the precautionary approach. Therefore, adherence to international codes of practice such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, the International Commission for the Exploration of the Sea, and the Organisation Internationale Epizootique should be a minimum requirement. Assessments and an appropriate monitoring programme should be put in place if introduction goes ahead. Preference should be given to the use of local species. Furthermore, development of technology to ensure a more complete containment should be encouraged."

1. The Executive Secretary will use as the basis of work recommendation I/8 of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (contained in document UNEP/CBD/COP/2/5), this decision and further inputs, if any, from the Conference of the Parties.

2. The Executive Secretary should use the roster of experts on Marine and Coastal Biodiversity to address the following topics:

(a) Identify options for a pragmatic but comprehensive approach in addressing marine and coastal biological diversity on the basis of an ecosystems approach, including its components at the levels of species and genetic resources, distinguishing regions at relevant scales. Use the results from this activity in identifying the gaps in knowledge of the distribution and abundance of marine and coastal biodiversity;

(b) Identify the particular needs for conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biological diversity in the context of activities which will impact on marine resources;

(c) Review the mandates and activities under international agreements that affect marine and coastal biological diversity, and develop analyses that can be offered by the Conference of the Parties to the relevant institutions as to the implications of the Convention on Biological Diversity for these activities.

3. In addressing these issues, the following approaches should be applied:

(a) The work should not be impeded by the lack of full scientific information and will incorporate explicitly the precautionary approach in addressing conservation and sustainable use issues;

(b) The Executive Secretary may interact with a wide range of agencies and organizations competent in the aspects of marine and coastal biodiversity under deliberation to avoid unnecessary duplication and ensure effectiveness and cost-effectiveness;

(c) Recommendations should be made for scientific, technical and technological needs for capacity-building and technology transfer for the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal resources at the national, regional, and international levels in the context of the issue being addressed;

(d) The scientific, technical, and technological knowledge of local and indigenous communities should be incorporated, as appropriate, as well as community and user-based approaches, in the conservation and sustainable use of marine and coastal biodiversity;

(e) Use should be made, as appropriate, of the clearing-house mechanism and national reports of Parties.

4. The Executive Secretary shall produce, among other relevant documents, the following outputs:

(a) Options for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and its components in the implementation of marine and coastal management and planning practices, including options for the development of integrated marine and coastal area management at regional and national levels;

(b) Annual reports to the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice, submitted 90 days prior to each meeting of that body. The first annual report will include a three-year work plan.