Pacific raises voice at negotiations on marine and coastal biodiversity

19 October Nagoya Japan - The Pacific entered negotiations at the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity today by raising points at the discussion on Marine and Coastal Biodiversity.

The Fiji Islands Ambassador to Japan, H.E Ambassador Isikeli Mataitoga, head of the Fiji Islands delegation read the intervention on behalf of the Pacific region, which called for three main points.

The Pacific would like to see the final outcome of the CBD COP 10 in Nagoya acknowledge that marine and coastal biodiversity is impacted upon by climate change.  If this is made official in the final statement, it will help strengthen support in addressing marine and coastal biodiversity.

“Madam chair, climate change continues to be the most serious threat to our ocean and our island biodiversity,” read H.E Ambassador Mataitoga on behalf of the Pacific island countries.

“We also recognize the adverse impacts on our marine and coastal ecosystems and we note that ocean fertilisation and acidification are emerging and important issues for the Pacific to consider in national and regional development plans."

To address this, Fiji called for the development of a joint expert workshop on oceans and climate change with a view of promoting better understanding of issues of common interest to the CBD and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

Another key point raised by the Pacific to be adopted by the CBD COP 10 is that which expedites the process of designating Marine Protected Areas in areas beyond national jurisdiction.  However, the Ambassador noted that large information gaps continue to be a challenge.

"The vulnerable marine ecosystems both inside and outside our EEZs are vast and their biodiversity largely unknown – it is imperative therefore that we continue to be guided by the wisdom of the precautionary principle.”

To this end, Fiji supported the proposal by Thailand to emphasize that the main role of the CBD with regards to the development of high seas protected areas is to provide scientific and technical guidance on the identification of ecologically or biologically significant areas outside of national jurisdiction.

Eleni Tokaduadua, of the National Environment Department of Fiji explained that clarification needs to be made as to the roles of the CBD and the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea if the Pacific island countries would like their high seas protected beyond their national jurisdiction.

“Not only that but we would like participation of CBD as well because we feel that the technical expertise and the scientific assessment is the work of the CBD but in terms of area coverage that is work of the UNCLOS so these two really need to work together.”

Lastly, Ambassador Mataitoga also called for financial support for capacity building in small island developing states and developing countries to enable the identification of priority high seas areas for protection and management.

To read the full intervention made by Fiji on behalf of the Pacific, please read below

Intervention at the COP10 on Item 5.2 – Marine and Coastal Biodiversity:

Thank you madam chair and congratulations for your appointment to the chair of this important working group.

Fiji on behalf of the Pacific Island Countries reaffirms the importance of marine and coastal ecosystems to our Pacific communities and our livelihoods.

This agenda item is vitally important to island states throughout the world as it contains a number of very important and long-term proposals for action that need to be carefully considered for the benefit and future of islands and their related ecosystems.

We particularly wish to share some of the bold moves in the Pacific for example, the 408,000 km2 Phoenix Island Protected Area established by Kiribati which was recently inscribed on the World Heritage List. The country of Kiribati, - one of the smallest countries of the world - has created one of the largest marine protected areas in the world.  In order to sustain these types of efforts in our Pacific Ocean to meet the 2012 marine protected area targets -  long-term global support will be needed.

For large ocean states in the Pacific, these discussions are critical. The diversity of life, subsistence and commercial fisheries, and cultures are dependent upon healthy ecosystems and the livelihoods these systems provide.   Madam chair, climate change continues to be the most serious threat to our ocean and our island biodiversity.

We also recognize the adverse impacts on our marine and coastal ecosystems and we note that ocean fertilisation and acidification are emerging and important issues for the Pacific to consider in national and regional development plans. In addition, large information gaps continue to be a challenge. The vulnerable marine ecosystems both inside and outside our EEZs are vast and their biodiversity largely unknown – it is imperative therefore that we continue to be guided by the wisdom of the precautionary principle.

All of these issues are critical to the long-term future of our islands and need urgent attention.

In relation to specific matters: 

• On the relationship between climate change and biodiversity (paragraph 8),  we support Thailand in supporting Option 3 of the text – thus the removal of the brackets.
• We request the removal of brackets in paragraph 15 to allow targets to be aligned to the revised Strategic plan of CBD and NBSAPs concurrently

• In relation to paragraph 19, we support Thailand on the following text modification:

19. Reiterating  the key role of the United Nations General Assembly and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in facilitation of designation of marine protected areas  beyond national jurisdiction, emphasizes that it is important that the process of identification of CBD’s ecologically or biologically significant marine (EBSAs) is understood to be a scientific and technical step different from the process used to decide on the policy and management responses that are appropriate for providing the desired level of protection to those areas.

• We additionally propose to remove the bracketed text in paragraph  24 to expedite the process of designating MPAs in areas beyond national jurisdiction and in paragraph 32 to request financial support for capacity building in SIDS and developing countries.

• Lastly, we support Indonesia’s proposal to add text on effective management on marine and coastal areas within national jurisdiction.

I thank you madam chair.