Relocation of NOWPAP Coordinator and Deputy Coordinator
In 2002, when the 7th NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting (IGM) decided that NOWPAP RCU offices will be co-hosted by Toyama (Japan) and Busan (Korea), member states agreed that every four years Coordinator and Deputy Coordinator would be rotated between these two offices.
According to the 12th NOWPAP IGM decision, the first rotation was scheduled for December 2008 - January 2009. On 15 December 2008, NOWPAP Coordinator, Alexander Tkalin, is expected to arrive to Busan RCU office. After hand-over formalities, NOWPAP Deputy Coordinator, Xiaodong Zhong, is expected to arrive to Toyama RCU office. As their e-mail addresses will remain the same (alexander.tkalin@nowpap.org and xiaodong.zhong@nowpap.org), daily communication will be established almost immediately. After settling down some technical issues (bank accounts, apartments, etc.), full-scale RCU operations are expected to be resumed after New Year holidays.
(released in December 2008)
NOWPAP Training Course on Remote Sensing Data Analysis
The Second NOWPAP training course on remote sensing data analysis was organized jointly by the NOWPAP Special Monitoring & Coastal Environmental Assessment Regional Activity Centre (CEARAC) and the Korea Ocean Research & Development Institute (KORDI) at Cheju National University (Korea) on1-5 November 2008.
The training course was conducted for 23 selected trainees, including postgraduate students, professional researchers and local government officers working in the field of marine sciences, from China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, France and Thailand. 12 lecturers from the NOWPAP countries (China, Japan, Republic of Korea and Russian Federation) and Germany, India and USA delivered lectures on remote sensing applications for monitoring and assessment of the marine and coastal environment in the Northwest Pacific Region.
(released on 28 November 2008)
3rd Workshop of the Yellow Sea Partnership
A representative of NOWPAP RCU participated in the 3rd Workshop of the Yellow Sea Partnership (YSP) in Changwon, the Republic of Korea on 2 November 2008. The meeting was attended by about 30 people from more than 20 organizations. Participants shared with each other the information on activities that have been implemented or being planned in relation to the protection of the Yellow Sea. The meeting participants heard 12 short presentations focusing on regional efforts and local actions taken in the Yellow Sea region and beyond. NOWPAP delivered a presentation introducing the recent NOWPAP activities on marine litter, harmful algal blooms, oil spills and integrated coastal and river basin management.
It was suggested that the next YSP workshop should be organized in China in 2009 (two previous workshops were held in China in 2006 and in Korea in 2007).
(released on 4 November 2008)
13th NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting held in Korea
The 13th NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting was held on 20-21 October 2008 in Jeju, Republic of Korea. The meeting was attended by representatives of the NOWPAP member states (China, Japan, Korea and Russia), UNEP (Marine Ecosystems Unit and Division of GEF Coordination) and NOWPAP partners (COBSEA, PEMSEA and YSLME). Although not able to dispatch representatives to the meeting in person, IOC/WESPAC and PICES sent written statements to the meeting for enhancing cooperation with NOWPAP. The meeting reviewed the programme of work for 2007-2008 and approved the report of the Executive Director of UNEP on the progress of the implementation of NOWPAP activities and budget; adopted the NOWPAP Regional Oil and Hazardous and Noxious Substance Spill Contingency Plan; and approved the new directions of work for NOWPAP Regional Activity Centres for 2008-2011. The meeting encouraged member states to facilitate and promote the implementation of the NOWPAP Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter (RAP MALI). The next NOWPAP Intergovernmental Meeting will be held in Japan in 2009.
(released on 29 October 2008)
2008 NOWPAP International Coastal Cleanup and training workshop
The NOWPAP Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter (RAP MALI) is being implemented since March 2008, after its approval by the four NOWPAP member states. The 2008 NOWPAP International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) and Training Workshop were held in Vladivostok, Russian Federation on 26-28 September, as one of RAP MALI activities. Representatives of the member states and the Regional Activity Centres (RACs) of NOWPAP and its partners such as COBSEA (Coordinating Body on the Seas of East Asia), YSLME (Yellow Sea Large Marine Ecosystem) and Ocean Conservancy (which initiated the ICC campaigns in 1986) attended the events. In addition, Russian students, NGOs, media representatives and general public also participated.
At the training workshop on 26 September, 12 presentations were given to share national case studies on the ICC campaigns and related activities in the NOWPAP region as well as beyond the region (e.g., East Asian countries). The global vision of the ICC campaign as a year around movement was presented by the representative of Ocean Conservancy. An on-site training for ICC beach cleanup was conducted in Schitovaya Bay, Vladivostok on 27 September. Fifty participants collected approximately 40 kg of marine litter. After the on-site training, there was a small group meeting to exchange views on the annual ICC campaign in the NOWPAP region as part of outreach strategies to address marine litter issues. The meeting encouraged China and Russia to continue their efforts to organize national ICC campaigns after they have recently joined this kind of activity through the NOWPAP projects on marine litter implemented over last three years.
A working meeting was held on 28 September, back-to-back with the workshop and on-site training of ICC, to discuss the current progress on the implementation of RAP MALI. Further activities to be carried out in the 2008-2009 biennium were also discussed in-depth.
(released on 1 October 2008)
ICC in Dalian
As one of the activities of the NOWPAP Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter, an International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) campaign was held in Dalian, People¡¯s Republic of China on 11 September 2008. This event brought several hundred volunteers from local governmental agencies, industries, universities and non-governmental organizations together with international participants representing Japan, Ocean Conservancy and NOWPAP Regional Coordinating Unit. As a direct result of the activity, over one hundred kilogram of marine litter has been collected on a swimming beach and more from the adjacent seabed where scuba divers were involved. Immediate prior to the ICC, a domestic meeting on marine litter was organized by the Ministry of Environmental Protection to build up awareness on the issue and share experiences among relevant governmental authorities such as Ministry of Agriculture, Maritime Safety Administration and State Oceanic Administration in tackling the problem nationwide. Right after the ICC, an international marine litter prevention and control workshop was also organized for the similar purpose. It is the first time that Ocean Conservancy, the initiator of the ICC campaign worldwide, has sent a senior vice president to China to participate and promote the ICC in China. Similar ICC activities are being organized in Shanghai and other parts of China.
(released on 17 September 2008)
2nd Joint NOWPAP Oil Spill Exercise
The 2nd Joint NOWAP Oil Spill Exercise was conduced on 2 September 2008 in Qingdao, China. This exercise was jointly organized by China Maritime Safety Administration and the Korea Coast Guard as one of the activities under the NOWPAP programme of work for 2008. The purpose of having this joint activity was to check the coordination between Chinese and Korean authorities in dealing with oil spill emergency preparedness and response. More than two dozen vessels, including two from Korea, an airplane and helicopter participated in the drill with more than 500 people observing the exercise. Representatives from 16 national and local agencies and related industries participated in the event. International observers included NOWPAP Regional Coordinating Unit and the Marine Environmental Emergency Preparedness and Response Regional Activity Centre (NOWPAP MERRAC), International Maritime Organization, Japan Coast Guard and a Singapore based oil spill-response company.
The exercise presented a scenario where a vessel lost control due to a fire caused by a circuit failure in the engine room and collided with an oil tanker anchored nearby. As a result of the incident, about 1,000 tones of oil were spilled and the crew needed to be evacuated. The exercise, which was divided into rescue effort and oil spill response, was conduced smoothly and successfully. Both national and local media have widely reported the event.
This is the second NOWPAP joint oil spill exercise. The first one was held in Aniva Bay (Sakhalin Island, Russia) in 2006 and was jointly organized by Russia and Japan.
(released on 04 September 2008)
Vacancies in NOWPAP RCU
UNEP has started recruitment of new NOWPAP RCU staff members (starting date – 1 April 2009): Administrative Officer for Toyama office and Scientific Affairs Officer for Busan office. Deadlines for applications are 14 and 17 October 2008, respectively. Please click here to see vacancy announcements on UNEP website.
(released on 19 August 2008)
New activities set for NOWPAP Regional Activity Centres
In May-June 2008, three NOWPAP Regional Activity Centres (DINRAC, MERRAC and POMRAC) held their Focal Points Meetings (CEARAC Meeting has been held in March 2008). All four NOWPAP Regional Activity Centres (RACs) have reviewed their progress and agreed on new projects for 2008-2009 biennium. In addition to continuing their routine tasks, NOWPAP RACs will implement the following activities:
• Improve the Internet Communication System among NOWPAP members to provide relevant data and information about marine environment quality in the region in order to serve as a clearing house;
• Carry out case studies on harmful algal blooms (HAB) in NOWPAP member states, develop HAB integrated website and procedures for assessing coastal eutrophication, conduct second training course on remote sensing data analysis;
• Organize 2nd NOWPAP Joint Oil Spill Exercise in Qingdao, China in 2008 and a regional workshop to share the experiences in the cleanup of the Hebei Spirit oil spill (occurred in December 2007 in the Republic of Korea);
• Integrate Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) into the existing NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan, develop HNS response operations guidelines, training manual and database;
• Carry out activities related to Integrated Coastal and River Basin Management (ICARM) with involvement of all NOWPAP RACs and in cooperation with partners such as PEMSEA, organize a workshop during the 2009 East Asian Seas Congress;
• Implement the NOWPAP Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter (RAP MALI).
(released on 24 June 2008)
UNEP
Deputy Executive Director
visited Toyama
On
31 May 2008, Ms. Angela
Cropper, Deputy Executive
Director of UNEP, visited
NOWPAP RCU office in
Toyama where she exchanged
opinions and ideas
with RCU staff members
after being briefed
on NOWPAP activities.
While in Toyama, she
paid a courtesy visit
to Governor of Toyama
Prefecture and Mayor
of Toyama City to express
appreciation for their
support for the operation
of NOWPAP RCU Toyama
Office. She also visited
ECO TOWN, a large recycling
complex, to see the automobile
recycling process.
She came to Japan to
attend the Tokyo International
Conference on African
Development (TICAD) held
in Yokohama from 28 to
30 May 2008. After TICAD,
she visited another UNEP
office in Osaka (IETC)
before coming to Toyama.
(released on 6 June 2008)
NOWPAP links with partners are strengthened
NOWPAP has recently increased exchange with partners through participation in a number of international meetings and workshops.
On 7-10 April 2008, NOWPAP activities were presented at the 4th Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts and Islands (attended by over 400 patricians from 70 countries). NOWPAP is trying to bring interested partners, such as PEMSEA, to share their experience in Integrated Coastal and River Basin Management (ICARM), and have received positive response.
At the 2008 International Coastal Cleanup Conference on 23-25 April, NOWPAP marine litter activities and future plans were introduced to 60 attendees, including the ICC national coordinators from the US and around the world. NOWPAP publications on marine litter were distributed among participants. The Ocean Conservancy, the ICC initiator and advocate, has expressed its willingness to participate in a training workshop planned by NOWPAP in September 2008, in order to further promote the ICC campaign in the region.
Presentation on NOWPAP efforts in marine litter monitoring has been made at the meeting of the UNEP/IOC Technical Working Group (TWG) on 1-3 May 2008. TWG members discussed the first draft of the UNEP/IOC Operational Guidelines on Survey and Monitoring of Marine Litter. Experience accumulated by NOWPAP member states in marine litter monitoring will be taken into account while finalizing the UNEP/IOC Guidelines, along with expertise from OSPAR, HELCOM and other programmes.
In order to strengthen partnerships with other organizations and programmes in the region, NOWPAP will participate in the upcoming 7th IOC/WESTPAC International Scientific Symposium ¡°Nature Hazards and the Changing Marine Environment in the Western Pacific and the 12th Session of the NEAR-GOOS Coordinating Committee which will take place on 21-25 May 2008. Both meetings are organized in conjunction with 7th Intergovernmental Session of the IOC Sub-Commission for the Western Pacific scheduled for 26-29 May 2008. Presentations on NOWPAP current and future activities will strengthen further cooperation with partners.
(released on 9 May 2008)
NOWPAP efforts to deal with marine litter got wide recognition
Since NOWPAP launched the marine litter activity in 2005, its efforts on dealing with this global problem have been continuously strengthened and started to attract attention outside the region. In the 2007 International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) report, recently published by the Ocean Conservancy, in addition to reflecting data from Korea and Japan, China and Russia (who jointed the ICC campaign recently) have been also praised for their participation in this international effort in Shanghai and Vladivostok. The report says that ¡°2007 ¡¦ also marked the second year of China¡¯s involvement with the ICC efforts. ¡¦ Russia also took part in the cleanup for the first time since 2003 ¡¦ ICC events in both Russia and China in 2007 were organized due to the efforts of the Northwest Pacific Action Plan (NOWPAP) of UNEP. With the NOWPAP assistance, clean-up campaigns will be continued in the region in 2008-2009 and beyond¡±.
(released on 24 April 2008)
PEMSEA launched a book on ocean governance
The book ¡°Securing the Oceans: Essays on Ocean Governance – Global and Regional Perspectives¡± was launched by PEMSEA (one of the NOWPAP partners) during the 4th Global Conference on Oceans, Coasts and Islands held on 7-11 April 2007 Hanoi. The book is envisaged to further stimulate and strengthen the pursuit of sustainable ocean development so as to secure the ocean and its resources for our future generations. The 25-chapter volume is a compendium of essays written by 25 authors in their different capacities as scientists, economists, lawyers, teachers, managers, users of marine resources, national and international civil servants, and administrators. To know more about this book, click here or order your copy now from the online bookstore.
During the FPM, the future CEARAC activities in 2008-2009 biennium were discussed. Meeting participants adopted the CEARAC work plan and budget and agreed that the main CEARAC activities will be as follows (all these activities will be undertaken in close communication and collaboration with global and regional partners such as UNESCO-IOC, PICES, IOC-WESTPAC, NEAR-GOOS, YSLME and others):
- Implementing HAB (Harmful Algal Blooms) case studies in NOWPAP member states; - Developing HAB integrated website, compiling and linking all recent results from NOWPAP and related projects and organizations; - Preparing educational materials for utilization of remote sensing data for marine environment monitoring; - Organizing 2nd training course on remote sensing data analysis (jointly with partners); - Developing procedures for assessment of eutrophication status, including evaluation of land based sources of nutrients, for the NOWPAP region; - Implementing NOWPAP Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter (RAP MALI).
In early September 2008, in conjunction with another regional workshop (details of which will be confirmed later), CEARAC is planning to bring together experts of its Working Groups on HAB and Remote Sensing applications to discuss the progress of implementation of CEARAC activities. (released on 11 March 2008)
UNDP/GEF Yellow Sea Project invites Expressions of Interest for the ¡°SAP demonstration activities"
To achieve this objective, the Project has identified management actions in its preparation of the Strategic Action Plan (SAP).
It is expected that implementing the management actions will mitigate environmental problems in the Yellow Sea and improve its diverse ecosystems.
The demonstration activity will be administered by UNOPS through the Project Management Office in Ansan, Republic of Korea.
To see the detail of each activity, click here. (February 2008)
NOWPAP members joined hands in fighting the oil spill in Korea
China, Japan and Russia joined hands in fighting the worst ever oil spill incident in the Korean history after activating the NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan on 10 December 2007. With the assistance from the NOWPAP Marine Environmental Emergency Preparedness and Response Regional Activity Centre (MERRAC) and NOWPAP Regional Coordinating Unit, China has sent a ship with experts and sorbents on board and Japan dispatched a team of experts to join the international efforts to help clean-up the oil spilled off the coast of Taean, Republic of Korea. Since the response operations at the sea have come to the end and the clean-up efforts are now focusing on the shore, NOWPAP deactivated the contingency plan on 14 January 2008.
Realizing the risk of oil spills in the region and importance of cooperation among members, NOWPAP plans to have the second joint oil spill exercise in October 2008 in China. (released on 16 January 2008)
(released on 23 April 2008)