Mr Co-chairman,
I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union. The Central and Eastern European countries associated with the European Union Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia and the associated countries Cyprus and Malta align themselves with this statement.
Oceans and seas cover seven-tenths of the planet. They constitute both an important source of food and a vital basis for economic activity for human beings all over the world, as well as an important part of the environment, which we are committed to protect. The problems of the oceans and seas are shared by all of humanity and need to be addressed on national, regional and global levels.
The European Union considers the UN General Assembly to be a proper forum for a global discussion on ocean affairs. The EU reiterates its belief that the establishment of the oceans consultative process in GA resolution 54/33 was a necessary response to the need for strengthening co-operation and co-ordination of ocean affairs at all levels, as voiced by the CSD, and already present in the preamble of UNCLOS which recognises the ocean affairs as inter-related and the oceans as a whole.
The responsibility for the state of the oceans and seas is a matter for both national governments and international bodies. In order to respond adequately to the needs and problems of the marine environment, co-ordination and co-operation on national, regional and global levels is crucial. In view of the need for an integrated management of the oceans and coastal zones and, thus, an intersectorial and interdisciplinary approach, co-ordination might also require institutional adjustments. Co-ordination should involve national governments, intergovernmental organisations and the academic community, as well as NGO:s. The UN system is the primary context in which such co-ordination should be provided and the co-ordination between UN agencies among themselves is very important in order to maximise the output of efforts undertaken.
The fundamental legal framework for addressing these issues is found in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Part XIII and XIV of UNCLOS provide a comprehensive legal regime for marine scientific research and development and transfer of marine technology. At the same time the EU underlines the close interaction with the political framework of Agenda 21.
A thorough and comprehensive knowledge on the state of the oceans and seas is essential in order to protect the marine environment and to develop the most appropriate efficient and cost-effective measures to do this. Marine scientific research in accordance with UNCLOS is the primary means to gain a fuller understanding of the conditions of the oceans and seas.
The EU reiterates that co-ordination and co-operation between existing research efforts need to be improved and strengthened at all levels. Activities at the regional level have often proven effective. The EU supports regional initiatives, ongoing regional schemes, such as those in place in the different regional fisheries organisations, as well as bi-regional co-operation schemes.
The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission's regional bodies can have a central role in regional scientific co-operation and monitoring and their co-operation with regional seas arrangements and regional fisheries organisations and arrangements is strongly encouraged. Such regional co-operation can provide a means of fulfilling the obligations under UNCLOS on the establishment of regional centres for marine science and technology. The EU welcomes the deliberations of the IOC Working Group, which gathered in Lisbon to prepare for the present session of the oceans consultative process, and supports the IOC in playing an important role in co-ordinating marine scientific activities, ocean services and related capacity-building.
The EU strongly encourages an increased co-operation between UNEP and other UN agencies and programmes, namely IOC as far as marine science is concerned, as well as between UNEP and relevant regional organisations, NGO:s and other actors in ocean affairs. Ongoing activities in UNEP such as the Global International Waters Assessment, the Regional Seas Programmes and the Global Programme of Action are fundamental in the process of co-operation and co-ordination. The EU also welcomes the decision in the UNEP Governing Council this year to explore the feasibility of establishing a regular process for the assessment of the state of the marine environment.
The EU supports the promotion of inter-and multidisciplinary research. The Global International Waters Assessment is an example of a valuable attempt to link knowledge on drainage basins to assessments of the marine environment in adjacent seas, building on information in regional fora. The EU further notes with satisfaction that GESAMP is currently undergoing an in-depth and independent evaluation to make this mechanism more effective and responsive.Mr Co-chairman,
Capacity-building is central in order to deliver concrete results in marine scientific research and activities based on such research, and goes together with appropriate transfer of technology. There is a need to build capacities at both national and regional levels and to develop the existing international institutions in this regard. It is important to maintain and strengthen the efforts that are already being undertaken in the field of capacity-building. All such efforts must also be kept under review to ensure that emerging problems and priorities are observed and addressed. New scientific methods and findings emerge gradually and it is important that those involved in scientific programmes have an ongoing dialogue among themselves as well as in relation to governments and international organisations. The "Research for Development" Programme of the EU (INCO-DEV) is a good example of scientific and technological capacity-building through targeted research.
In the area of observations on climate change and marine pollution the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), co-ordinated by IOC jointly with other organisations, should be implemented in a balanced manner through its various modules. To this end, opportunities must be created that enable developing countries to participate fully in scientific research and monitoring programmes, such as the GOOS. In this context, the EU would be willing to assist other regions to benefit from its experiences, and to encourage Euro-GOOS to undertake such actions. Capacity-building for the benefit of developing countries and the Small Island Developing States is essential and should be ensured through existing programmes. The special needs of those states should be addressed in such programmes.
Recent decades have brought significant advances in understanding the marine ecosystems in which the marine living resources form a vital part. There is still considerable scope for improvement of that understanding. In the European Council's resolution from Nice in December 2000, it is stated that use should be made of the precautionary principle where the possibility of harmful effects on health or the environment has been identified and preliminary scientific evaluation, based on the available data, proves inconclusive for assessing the level of risk. The importance of the precautionary principle has been further highlighted by a communication from the European Commission approved by the Fisheries Council on 26th of April 2001 referring to the said principle in relation to the assessment of TAC's in the EU fisheries policy.
In light of this, the EU would like to stress the need for further establishment of precautionary reference points, as well as an ecosystem-based approach, as a basis for decisions on fisheries and marine ecosystems management. This is a necessary precondition for the application of the precautionary approach as stated in the Agreement relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks. Such reference points have been established, but for a large number of stocks the available data is insufficient. This is an area where co-operation between research institutions, regional fisheries organisations and the FAO is necessary in order to make rapid progress.
The EU further considers global monitoring of stocks of marine living resources to be an area in need for strengthened co-operation and co-ordination. The state of such stocks is increasingly precarious and it is necessary to ensure that information is up-to-date, comprehensive and reliable, particularly when the data is used for policy purposes, as in the upcoming revision of the EU Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). While the FAO has a central role to play in this context, basic biological information from its member states, as well as co-operation with regional fisheries bodies are essential factors in successfully addressing this problem.Mr Co-chairman,
Ocean management decisions should draw upon well-documented scientific and technical information, with decision-makers dependent on scientists for collecting and interpreting the relevant data. The EU, therefore, strongly underlines the need to strengthen the link between marine scientific research and policy-making institutions in order to effectively make the best use of scientific results. It is important that knowledge gained through marine scientific research is disseminated and appropriately brought to the attention of policy-makers. Decision-making institutions on all levels are encouraged to consider how to further improve co-ordination and dialogue with scientific programmes and institutions.
Thank you, Mr Co-chairman.