1997 TO BE CRITICAL YEAR FOR GLOBAL ACTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
Press Release
ENV/DEV/391
1997 TO BE CRITICAL YEAR FOR GLOBAL ACTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
19961227 MONTREAL, 27 December (CBD) -- The International Day for Biological Diversity, which marks the entry into force three years ago of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), will be observed on 29 December by the United Nations and its Member States.The Convention is the centrepiece of the international community's efforts to protect and sustainably use some of the earth's greatest riches -- the diversity of life including genes, species and ecosystems.
"As the new year approaches, 1997 promises to see the Convention make the transition from being a negotiating document to being an active programme that makes itself felt at the local, national and international levels", said the Convention's Executive Secretary Calestous Juma. "With the Convention's procedures and work programme now in place, its 165 parties -- who represent the vast majority of the world's population and land area -- can start to make real and visible changes in how humanity relates to biodiversity."
The coming year will be vital for the entire United Nations-inspired process for sustainable development. In June 1997, exactly five years after the Rio United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), where the Biodiversity Convention was opened for signature, a special session of the General Assembly will be held in New York to review the progress made so far on achieving Rio's goals. It will also evaluate the United Nations institutional support to sustainable development and will set priorities for the future. The international biodiversity agenda will be strongly affected by the special session's conclusions.
It is increasingly recognized that biodiversity is central to sustainable development and to Agenda 21, the programme of action for sustainable development adopted at UNCED. The Convention on Biological Diversity cuts across many vital economic and environment issues -- from climate change and desertification to water quality and air pollution to poverty alleviation and development projects.
Some of the major issues on the 1997-1998 biodiversity agenda include the following:
- 2 - Press Release ENV/DEV/391 27 December 1996
-- Biosafety: The biosafety negotiations that started earlier this year reflect growing concern about the potential risks posed by living modified organisms produced by modern biotechnology. There are currently no binding international agreements addressing situations where living modified organisms cross national borders, whether through trade or by accident. Many developing countries lack the technical, financial and institutional capacity to address biosafety. The talks, which will continue from 12 to 16 May 1997 in Montreal, are expected to lead to the adoption of a biosafety protocol to the Biodiversity Convention in 1998.
-- Agriculture: Most people probably do not realize just how intimately agriculture and biodiversity are linked. As humanity steadily narrows the range of crops it uses for food, there is a growing risk that declining agricultural diversity could undermine food security and the ability of future generations to satisfy their basic needs. For that reason, Governments have decided to focus over the coming two years on sustainable agriculture, which links conservation efforts and socio-economic benefits. An international meeting of experts on the matter is likely to be held in May in Montreal.
-- Forests: Too often forests are managed merely as sources of timber. A more comprehensive approach recognizes that tropical, temperate and boreal forests provide a full range of services, including, for example, watershed management. The vital issue of sustainable forestry is being addressed through the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests set up by the Commission on Sustainable Development, which is set to conclude its work in February in New York. The Panel's findings will help to define the Convention's future agenda on forests.
-- Marine and coastal areas: Countering the threats of habitat destruction, pollution, invasions by alien species and over-exploitation can best be achieved by bringing together the many scientific, legal, economic and technological issues that affect marine and coastal areas. The relevant biodiversity work programme is based on five thematic areas: integrated marine and coastal area management; marine and coastal protected areas; sustainable use of coastal and marine living resources; mariculture (e.g. fish farming); and alien species. The next meeting of experts on those matters will be held in Indonesia in March.
-- Indigenous and local knowledge: The Convention recognizes the special role that indigenous and local communities play in the protection and sustainable use of biodiversity. Their knowledge, innovations and practices need to be identified and protected, and the Convention is the unique forum in which to address that issue. An intergovernmental workshop will be held in late 1997 to look at the practical and legal issues surrounding intellectual property rights and indigenous peoples.
- 3 - Press Release ENV/DEV/391 27 December 1996
In addition to the workshops and negotiating sessions cited above, experts and government officials will attend the next meeting of the Convention's Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice in Montreal from 1 to 5 September. The fourth session of the Conference of the Parties will then be held in May 1998 in Slovakia. The fourth session of the Conference will review the work programme as well as the first national reports that Governments will soon start submitting describing their strategies and actions for promoting the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
* *** *
Note: Documents and other information related to the International Day's observance will be posted on the Internet at http://www.biodiv.org and http://www.unep.ch. To contact the participants or to place yourself on the mailing list for biodiversity events, please contact Beatriz Torres, CBD Secretariat, World Trade Centre, 393 St. Jacques St., Montreal, Quebec H2Y 1N9, Canada. Tel: (1) 514 288 2220; Fax: (1) 514 228 6588; e-mail:biodiv@mtl.net.