Highlights and images for 21 August 2019

Negotiations
Conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction – BBNJ
3rd Session of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction

Summary

Highlights for Wednesday, 21 August 2019

Spotted sea slug from the Bahamas. Photo by Marcelo Halpern

The third session of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) on an international legally binding instrument (ILBI) under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) convened in New York on Wednesday, with delegates meeting in an open informal working group on area-based management tools (ABMTs), including marine protected areas (MPAs). They also met in two closed-door “informal-informals,” to discuss certain aspects of environmental impact assessments (EIAs), and marine genetic resources (MGRs).

During the informal working group on ABMTs, delegates discussed the identification of areas, including those that may require protection. Highlights of the day include:

Informal-informals on EIAs, considering the relationship between the future High Seas agreement and EIA processes under other instruments, and the role of states in decision-making related to EIA activities;

Informal-informals on access to MGRs of areas beyond national jurisdiction, including discussions on potentially setting parameters for access to these resources; and

Discussions in plenary on the identification of areas requiring protection, including a list of criteria for the establishment or designation of ABMTs, and the basis on which ABMTs are identified, with references to best available science, an ecosystem approach, and traditional knowledge.

In the morning, Facilitator Alice Revell (New Zealand) summarized Tuesday’s informal-informal discussion on international cooperation and coordination, and decision making. She highlighted that delegates had discussed ideas related to definitions of ABMTs, including MPAs, reflecting the general understanding that ABMTs are a broader concept that includes MPAs. She highlighted divergent views on the definition of MPAs, including whether to refer to them as tools to achieve long-term biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.

In the corridors, strong calls were made to keep an eye on the purpose of the global treaty, with one delegate “highlighting, underlining, and underscoring the need for swift progress,” adding that “millions of species are at risk and that should spur us to better use the time we have here.” For more details on the day’s negotiations and to hear what delegates said in the corridors, see our daily Earth Negotiations Bulletin.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage, daily reports, and a summary and analysis report from BBNJ IGC-3. The summary and analysis report is now available in HTML and PDF.

Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon

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Informal Working Group

Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on ABMTs, including MPAs

IGC President Rena Lee, Singapore

L-R: Miguel de Serpa Soares, Secretary-General of the IGC, Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs and UN Legal Counsel; Alice Revell, New Zealand, Facilitator of the informal working group on ABMTs; Gabriele Goettsche-Wanli, Director, UN Division of Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea (UNDOALOS); Valentina Germani, UNDOALOS; Stephanie Ierino, UNDOALOS; and Marco Boccia, UNDOALOS