Progress report for
Strengthening regional cooperation for the protection of the marine and coastal environment in the Northwest Pacific
Achievement at a glance
05/2018: Annual meeting of the NOWPAP Special Monitoring and Coastal Environmental Assessment Regional Activity Centre agreed on the preparation of a Regional Action Plan on Marine and Coastal Biodiversity Conservation.06/2018: NOWPAP launches a special project: Monitoring and Assessment Methods for Microplastics Pollution led by the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences.
On World Environment Day, NOWPAP and Tripartite Environmental Ministers Meeting share progress tackling abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear, support Asia Pacific Civil Forum on Marine Litter and conduct beach cleanup campaign with local communities.
NOWPAP Data and Information Regional Activity Centre assessment finds more endangered species are living in the NOWPAP region than those listed in the IUCN Red List of Species: up to 143 species were evaluated as endangered and 10 species, including hawksbill sea turtle, were ranked as critically endangered.
NOWPAP members adopt Medium-Term Strategy 2018-2023 meeting the first milestone of the Voluntary Commitment. The major focus of the NOWPAP Strategy is on the coordination of the regional implementation of the ocean-related SDGs using NOWPAP mechanism and thus marks a historic step in the NOWPAP evolution.
07/2018: The January 2018 sinking of the oil tanker Sanchi was the worlds largest marine pollution incident since 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill off the coast of Alaska. An online Pollution Reporting System set up by the NOWPAP Marine Environmental Emergency Preparedness and Response Regional Activity Centre enabled members share effectively information and coordinate response.
Experts of the NOWPAP Pollution Monitoring Regional Activity Centre made progress in defining good environmental status by agreeing on six common Ecological Quality Objective indicators.
10/2018: 23rd NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting launched a special project led by the Russian National Scientific Center of Marine Biology to identify key species and habitats of transboundary concern to be used as indicators of biodiversity change in the region.
Beneficiaries
Governments, public and private sector entities, and public at large in NOWPAP member states: China, Japan, Republic of Korea, and Russia, involved in marine and coastal protection issues in the Northwest Pacific region