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PACIFIC ISLANDS
REGIONAL OCEAN POLICY
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a copy of the policy in PDF format)
VISION
A healthy Ocean that sustains the livelihoods and aspirations of
Pacific Island communities.
THIS IS OUR
OCEAN
The care of the ocean is the responsibility of all people. The oceans
are inter-connected and interdependent, covering some seventy per cent
of the world's surface. They are the last great frontier and their
conservation and sustainable use is vital to the well being and
survival of the human race.
Pacific Island
communities inhabit the islands scattered throughout an Ocean across
which some of the most inspiring migrations in human history have taken
place, over many thousands of years. The Ocean unites Pacific Island
communities more than anything else. It has supported generations of
Pacific Island communities - not only as a medium for transport but
also as a source of food, tradition and culture.
Our Ocean, coastal
and island ecosystems contain high biological diversity that has
sustained the lives of Pacific Island communities since first
settlement. It contains the most extensive coral reefs in the world,
globally important fisheries, significant seabed mineral resources and
high number of threatened species. These ecosystems may contain many
undiscovered resources of potential use to humankind.
Many thousands of
islands and atolls are entirely coastal in nature.
The Ocean is not
only a lifeline, it is also a source of hazard. These hazards can be
increased by the impact of human activities both within and external to
the Pacific Islands region.
Our Ocean
provides the greatest opportunities for economic development.
Responsibly managed, it has the potential to support Pacific Island
communities in perpetuity.
As Pacific Island
communities we are acutely aware that over ninety eight per cent of the
38.5 million square kilometres of the Earth's surface over which we
have direct influence is ocean. But concerns for the long-term health
of the Ocean are not confined to the areas covered by sovereign rights,
they extend equally to adjacent areas of high seas.
Our commitment to
the development of a common Policy for this Ocean stems from our
collective awareness of an increasing number and severity of threats to
its long-term integrity. This Policy presents a framework for the
sustainable development, management and conservation of the resources
and habitats within the region. It provides guiding principles for
individual and collaborative action that will promote responsible
stewardship of this large Ocean for regional and global benefit.
This policy is
intended to promote the Pacific region as an ocean environment in
support of sustainable development. It is not a legal document, however
its guiding principles are founded on international law, as reflected
in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other
international and regional agreements.
These guiding
principles are: improving our understanding of the Ocean; sustainably
developing and managing use of Ocean resources; maintaining the health
of the Ocean; promoting the peaceful use of the Ocean; and creating
partnerships and promoting co-operation.
We invite others
to recognise our commitment to these guiding principles and support our
strategies to implement this Policy to help ensure our Ocean, coasts
and islands remain healthy and sustains the livelihoods and aspirations
of Pacific Island communities.
WHY A
REGIONAL OCEAN POLICY?
The need for a
Policy is based on our collective awareness of the transboundary and
dynamic nature of our Ocean, the increasing number and severity of
threats to its long-term integrity, and the reality that sustainable
economic and social development will be dependent on wise use of the
Ocean and its resources. It is also based on our awareness of the
potential for fragmentation of programmes and for conflicting
commitments in different sectors as ocean-related activities increase.
This requires increased regional collaborative arrangements among
Pacific Island communities.
PACIFIC ISLANDS REGION
For the purpose of this Policy, the "region" includes that part of the
Pacific Ocean in which the island countries and territories (Pacific
Communities), that are members of the organisations comprising the
Council of Regional Organisations of the Pacific (CROP) are found. As
such, the extent of the region includes not only the area within the
200 nautical miles Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) boundaries
circumscribing these island countries, but also the ocean and coastal
areas that encompass the extent of the marine ecosystems that support
the region.
The "Ocean" is
defined to include the waters of the ocean, the living and non-living
elements within, the seabed beneath and the ocean-atmosphere and
ocean-island interfaces.
Pacific Islands
are often referred to as Small Island Developing States. They may also
be thought of as Large Ocean Developing States.
Capacity
Building
In order to replenish and sustain our knowledge base, it is necessary
to generate new knowledge about the oceans upon which our way of life
depends. Fundamental to the sustained generation of new knowledge is
the continuing education of a cadre of scientists and policy makers.
Educating and training people within the region is the best strategy
for ensuring the continuity of marine understanding and replenishment
of knowledge.
Vulnerability
Pacific Island communities are particularly vulnerable to certain
environmental, economic and social circumstances.
Environmental
factors include: climate variability, climate change and sea-level
rise; immediate natural hazards such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and
volcanic events, fragile ecosystems and natural resource bases, and
geographic isolation.
Economic factors
include: limited land area and freshwater resources; limited local
markets; high import dependencies; fluctuating world prices for
commodities; and isolation, including large distances to world markets.
Social factors
include: population growth & distribution; human and food security;
external influences, cultural dilution and loss of traditional
knowledge and practices.
Rights and responsibilities
The Ocean has been
the major influence in the history of Pacific Island communities.
Throughout the region, customary association with the sea forms the
basis of present day social structures, livelihoods and tenure systems
and traditional systems of stewardship governing its use.
International law
and instruments confer rights on Pacific Island communities relating to
the use of the Ocean and its resources. With these rights come
responsibilities, especially for sustainable development, management
and conservation of the ocean's living resources and for the protection
of the ocean environment and its biodiversity.
Pacific Island
communities have established national laws, based on international
principles and customary practices, which provide for responsible
management and use of the Ocean and its resources within their areas of
jurisdiction.
The Pacific
communities will work with other partners to promote the application of
compatible policies by those partners in areas subject to their
jurisdiction and surrounding waters, and with all other countries
having interests in the region.
Island communities
respect the rights and interests of others to participate in legitimate
activities. With this sharing comes the expectation that they will meet
their obligations and responsibilities to our Ocean.
This Policy
promotes good stewardship which refers to active engagement by
communities in caring for the oceans. It draws upon ideas, policies,
institutions and enforcement procedures needed to protect the oceans
and coasts from abuse including the effects of land-based activities.
VISION
A healthy Ocean that sustains the livelihoods and aspirations of
Pacific Island communities.
GOAL
The goal of this Policy
is to ensure the
future sustainable use of our Ocean and its resources
by Pacific Islands communities and external partners.
The Guiding
Principles to achieve this Goal are:
1.Improving our Understanding of the Ocean
2.Sustainably Developing and Managing the use of Ocean Resources
3.Maintaining the Health Of the Ocean
4.Promoting the Peaceful Use of the Ocean
5.Creating Partnerships and Promoting Co-Operation
PRINCIPLE 1-
IMPROVING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE OCEAN
Contemporary and traditional understanding of the ocean provides the
basis for sustainable use of the ocean and its resources, for the
amelioration of pollution and harmful practices and for the prediction
of weather, climate and ocean variability.
Resource
management approaches based purely on scientific information have had
limited success in the region over the last 50 years. The cost of
obtaining scientific information, in all but a few highly
commercialised systems, is beyond the capacity of many islands. As a
result resource managers in the Region advocate precautionary
management approaches that are more robust where comprehensive
scientific understanding and intensive monitoring are difficult. This
includes an enhanced role for communities and customary resource owners
in the development and application of local management arrangements for
local resources.
Whilst community
approaches are essential for implementing effective resource management
in many cases, the long-term maintenance of exploited ecosystems,
particularly transboundary systems, still requires better science.
Increased understanding of ocean and coastal processes and ecosystems
is critically dependent on shared access to global and regional
developments in science and technology, to enable research, exploration
and development of both living and non-living marine resources, and on
economic systems that can pay for long-term monitoring and observation.
The result will be improved ability to effectively conserve marine
biological diversity and predict the impact of climate variation and
human use patterns on the health of the ocean.
Strategic
Actions
— To identify and
prioritise information needs and the co-operative mechanisms
for acquiring, accessing and disseminating information.
— To strengthen national and regional capacity, encourage partnerships
between regional and international organisations, and the public and
private sectors, to improve our understanding of the ocean.
— To facilitate access to this information, encourage its wide
application in the implementation of this Policy and any compatible
national ocean policies that may be developed in association with it.
— To have regard for traditional knowledge and its potential to
contribute to better understanding the ocean and to the effective
management of resources.
— To promote further formal education and training of local people in
marine science and marine affairs disciplines.
PRINCIPLE 2 -
SUSTAINABLY DEVELOPING AND MANAGING THE USE OF OCEAN RESOURCES
Pacific Island communities are heavily reliant on the wide range of
resources and services that the Ocean provides for their social,
cultural and economic security. This includes not only the existing
extractive uses of its living and non-living resources but also the
non-extractive uses such as transport and communication, waste
disposal, recreation and tourism, and cultural activities. New
research, technologies and markets are creating opportunities for
accessing and using the ocean and its resources.
To safeguard Pacific Island communities and maintain the health of our
Ocean in perpetuity, it is imperative that we adopt a precautionary
management approach to ensure the use of the Ocean and its resources
are sustainable.
Strategic
Actions
— To identify, prioritise and implement resource development and
management actions and regimes, in accordance with the precautionary
approach;
— To encourage equitable sharing of resource access and benefits at
local, national and regional levels;
— To engage, as appropriate, local communities and other stakeholders
in resource management decision making;
— To build capacity of Pacific Island communities for sustainable
resource development and management;
— To establish and protect traditional knowledge rights.
— To establish and protect intellectual property rights.
PRINCIPLE 3 -
MAINTAINING THE HEALTH OF THE OCEAN
The health and productivity of our Ocean is driven by regional-scale
ecosystem processes. It is dependent upon preserving ecosystem
integrity and minimising the harmful impact of human activity.
Threats to ocean and coastal health and productivity, reflected in a
degradation in water quality and resource depletion include accidental
and deliberate dumping of fuels, chemicals and ballast water from
ships, aircraft and satellite launches, and non sustainable resource
use.
Pollution from the land contributes up to eighty per cent of all ocean
pollution and is a major threat to the long-term health of nearshore
systems affecting ecological processes, public health and social and
commercial use of ocean resources.
Strategic
Actions
— To adopt an integrated transboundary approach, through harmonised
institutional arrangements, including existing international and
regional agreements, to managing marine ecosystems for long-term
sustainable benefit.
— To incorporate sound environmental and social practices into economic
development activities.
— To protect and conserve biological diversity of the ocean ecosystem
at local, national and regional scales.
— To reduce the impact of all sources of pollution on our Ocean
environment.
PRINCIPLE
4 - PROMOTING THE PEACEFUL USE OF THE OCEAN
Peaceful uses of the Ocean have environmental, political, social
economic, and security dimensions. Promoting peaceful use means
discouraging and reducing unacceptable, illicit, criminal, or other
activities contrary to regional and international agreements. Such
activities threaten the major source of livelihood for Pacific Island
communities.
Strategic
Actions
— To ensure that all activities carried out in our Ocean meet all
relevant international and regional standards, and do not cause
environmental damage, social or economic hardship in the region.
— To seek remedial action in the event of an incident resulting from
non-peaceful use of the Ocean
— To ensure that the ocean is not used for criminal activities nor for
other activities that breach local, national or international laws
— To encourage co-operation amongst law enforcement agencies.
PRINCIPLE
5 - CREATING PARTNERSHIPS AND PROMOTING CO-OPERATION
Partnerships and cooperation provide an enabling environment and are
essential for the sustainable management of our Ocean. As a group
Pacific Island communities achieve economies of scale, a united voice
for international advocacy, a regional power bloc with increased
international influence and a forum for developing coordinated action
on ocean issues of mutual interest or with transboundary implications.
In pursuit of creating partnerships and promoting cooperation, Pacific
Island communities will seek to maintain sovereign rights and
responsibilities in managing, protecting and developing the Ocean.
Strategic
Actions
— To foster partnerships and cooperation in the areas of security,
monitoring, enforcement and the sustainable use of resources.
— To make fullest possible use of regional and international
partnerships and collaboration, such as regional organisations,
ocean-related treaties, and bilateral arrangements as appropriate.
— To have regard for the ocean policies of ocean jurisdictions
adjoining our own, and advocate that their policies have regard for
this Policy.
— To encourage Pacific Island communities to develop national ocean
policies that complement and are consistent with this Policy.
FUTURE
This Policy is the result of a regional effort to achieve responsible
ocean governance. It is based on existing international and regional
agreements that establish a broad framework for regional cooperation
and coordination to sustainably manage and conserve the ocean ecosystem
in the region. It provides the basis for the harmonisation of national
and regional actions, for the next five years.
The implementation
process will require a commitment by all stakeholders.
This Policy
articulates guiding principles and strategic actions that will define a
regional Pacific Ocean Initiative. The Initiative will include a
Pacific Islands Regional Ocean Summit to define the status of current
knowledge and activities, and a review process to define progress, and
will provide an integrated framework to include existing programmes,
and identify and prioritise future Action Plans.
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