MATTHEW GIANNI CO-FOUNDER, POLITICAL AND POLICY ADVISOR DEEP SEA - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Marine Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction - the need for a sustainable management and protection

MATTHEW GIANNI CO-FOUNDER, POLITICAL AND POLICY ADVISOR DEEP SEA CONSERVATION COALITION

THE NEED FOR GLOBAL OCEANS GOVERNANCE The future we REALLY want: A Greens/EFA conference on Rio+20

6 June 2012

UN Conference on Environment & Development Rio Earth Summit 1992

Major outcomes

• Framework Convention on Climate Change
• Convention on Biological Diversity
• Desertification Convention
• SIDs (Barbados Programme of Action 1994)
• Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-

Based Activities (UNEP Global Programme of Action 1995)

• 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement (Agenda 21 17.50)

UN Fish Stocks Agreement Articles 5 and 6

General principles, precautionary and ecosystem approaches

• Prevent or eliminate overfishing
• Assess the impacts of fishing on the ecosystem
• Minimize waste, bycatch, discards and the impacts of

fishing on associated & dependent species

• Protect biodiversity in the marine environment
• Apply the precautionary approach widely
• Be more cautious when information is uncertain,

unreliable or inadequate

• Protect habitats of special concern

World Summit on Sustainable Development 2002

• Application of the ecosystem approach
• Promote integrated, multisectoral coastal and
• cean management
• Maintain or restore stocks to levels that can

produce the maximum sustainable yield with the aim of achieving these goals for depleted stocks

• n an urgent basis and where possible not later

than 2015

• Significant reduction in the rate of biodiversity

loss by 2010

WSSD 2002

• Eliminate subsidies that contribute to IUU

fishing and to over-capacity

• Maintain the productivity and biodiversity of

important and vulnerable marine and coastal areas

• Eliminate destructive fishing practices
• Establish marine protected areas, including

representative networks of MPAs by 2012

Three issues

• 1. MSY and preventing overfishing
• 2. Eliminating destructive fishing practices:

deep-sea fisheries

• 3. New implementing agreement under

the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

• 1. MSY & UN Fish Stocks Agreement
• Prevent or eliminate overfishing
• Establish precautionary “target” reference points for

managing fish stocks

• Establish “limit” reference points to constrain fishing

within safe biological limits

• Take into account uncertainty; be more cautious when

information is uncertain, unreliable or inadequate

• Ensure that reference points are “not exceeded”
• MSY is a “minimum standard for limit reference points”

Why the debate over MSY?

• UNCLOS: Maintain or restore fish stocks to levels

which can produce MSY (61.3, 119.1a) - adopted 1982, entered into force 1994

• UN FSA: MSY minimum standard for limit reference

points; management target must be set higher - adopted 1995, entered into force 2003

• CFP Reform 2012: MSY maybe by 2015 if possible?
• EU credibility regarding political commitments and

international law

• 2. Eliminating destructive fishing

practices: deep-sea fisheries

WSSD goal and UN General Assembly resolutions 59/25 (2004), 61/105 (2006), 64/72 (2009) and 66/68 (2011) Positive developments

• Deep-sea bottom trawl bans in Azores, Madeira &

Canary Islands (2005)

• EU party to bottom trawl ban in Southern Ocean (2006)
• Council Reg. 734/2008 to implement UNGA 61/105

largely complied with by Member State in SW Atlantic (2011)

• Additional area closures to protect corals, sponges,

seamounts in NE Atlantic & elsewhere (ongoing)

• 2. Eliminating destructive fishing practices:

deep-sea fisheries

However, much more still needs to be done. Key Opportunity 2012:

• Review of the Northeast Atlantic Deep Sea fisheries

access regime (Reg. 2347/2002)

• Commission proposal due out soon
• Require impact assessments & other elements of UN

resolutions for all deep-sea fisheries

• Phase-out destructive practices such as deep-sea

bottom trawling and gillnet fishing

Publications

DSCC www.savethehighseas.org

• 1. & 2. Rio+20: the Future we want
• Implementation of previous Summit commitments

– ecosystem approach to fisheries – ending destructive fishing practices – fishing at levels consistent with the precautionary approach – eliminate harmful subsidies – end IUU fishing – other UN FSA/WSSD etc

• Much of this is in the hands of Parliament &

Council/Member States: CFP Reform

• 3. Rio+20: the Future we want

Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, High Seas Alliance

An agreement in Rio to initiate negotiation for a new high seas (ABNJ) treaty/implementing agreement under UNCLOS

• High seas (areas beyond national jurisdiction)

cover approximately 2/3rds of the oceans or 45%

• f the surface of the earth
• Clear gaps in governance, implementation,

regulation and enforcement in ocean areas beyond national jurisdiction

• Need for overarching cooperation, coordination

and implementation

Gaps in Impact Assessments

Marine debris Waste disposal Spills & leaks Fisheries Invasive species Bioprospecting Deep seabed mining

Credit: Greenpeace

Credit: Greenpeace

New and emerging issues

Ocean noise Open ocean aquaculture Co2 sequestration/Ocean fertilization Adaptation and mitigation to climate change Resource conflicts EEZ boundaries/sea level rise

The problems of ocean space are closely interrelated and need to be considered as a whole

Preamble to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982)

Credit: Scripps Institution of Oceanography, NOAA

“Scientists have found 274 new species of corals, starfish, sponges, shrimps, and crabs 1.2 miles (2 kilometers) beneath the surface of the ocean around Antarctica…They also discovered 145 undersea canyons and 80 new seamounts”

National Geographic News Oct 2008 (CSIRO expedition)

‘Scientists found that almost no areas have been left pristine and that more

than 40% of the world's oceans have been heavily affected.’

Human impacts don’t recognize boundaries

(c) Halpern et al. 2008.

Source: Tagging of Pacific Predators, McIntyre AD, ed. 2010. Blackwell Publishing, Ltd, Census of Marine Life 2010: Highlights of a Decade of Discovery.

Species do not recognize boundaries

50 % of the planet 64% of the ocean is beyond national jurisdiction

• 3. New agreement for marine biodiversity conservation

in areas beyond national jurisdiction

Implementing Agreement of UNCLOS

• Establish global standard and requirement for

EIAs and Strategic impact assessments

• Representative networks of MPAs
• Conservation, sustainable use, access and

benefit sharing of Marine Genetic Resources Other elements?

Implementing Agreement

• Enhanced obligations:
• Protection and Preservation of the Marine Environment

including representative networks of MPAs and reserves

• International Cooperation
• Science-Based Approach to Management
• The Precautionary and Ecosystem Approach including Prior

EIAs, SAIs and cumulative impact assessments

• Sustainable and Equitable Use
• Public Availability of Information
• Transparent and Open Decision Making Processes
• Mechanisms for Monitoring, Control and Enforcement
• State Accountability and Responsibility including Flag State

UNGA BBNJ WG

Can we put the presentations on the web ?

Titanic

Ok boys! We need to rearrange the deck chairs for workshops. Do they have any idea what they are going to talk about ? Who’s gonna pay for this? How many? One or two?

Quick! Change course for Rio before its too late!

Over 6 years of debate (UNGA BBNJ Working Goup) – now time for a decision

Rio+20: the Future we want

Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, High Seas Alliance

An implementing agreement under UNCLOS Current draft text Para Oceans 6 (alt1):

“We agree to initiate, as soon as possible, the negotiation, in the framework of the UN General Assembly, of an implementing agreement to UNCLOS that would address the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction”

(similar to para 17.50 of Agenda 21 calling for UN FSA Conference)

EU & G.77 ‘like-minded’ supportive but U.S., Iceland, Japan, Korea, Russia, Canada (Norway) opposed

Thanks

Hermione Project, Oxford-IPSO, INDEEP, IMARES, Pew Environment Group, Kristina Gjerde, Remi Parmentier, Lisa Speer and many others!

www.savethehighseas.org