Summary
On Wednesday, delegates to the seventeenth meeting of the UN Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea (ICP-17) continued their discussions under the theme: “marine debris, plastics and microplastics.”
Discussion panels took place throughout the day on the topic: “challenges, lessons learned, best practices and way forward to prevent, reduce and control pollution from marine debris, plastics and microplastics.”
In the morning, delegates heard six presentations on: the UNEA-2 outcome on marine debris; the role of the World Bank’s Pollution Management and Environmental Health (PMEH) Trust Fund in strengthening solid waste management to protect marine environments; scaling recycling through zero-interest loans to cities and investments in waste companies; market-based and design change solutions to address the impact of lost and discarded fishing gear; and market-focused sustainable packaging initiatives.
In the afternoon, delegates heard six presentations on: characterization of marine debris in Peru; perspectives from Ocean Conservancy; innovative technologies used in the work of The Ocean Cleanup foundation; creative solutions for Pacific plastic pollution; ways of partnering with urban youth on upstream solutions, civic action, media and messaging to reduce plastic marine debris and microplastics; and the way towards an improved framework to prevent marine plastic debris.
IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web coverage and a summary and analysis report from the 17th Meeting of the United Nations Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea (ICP-17) - Marine Debris, Plastics and Microplastics. Our summary is available in HTML and PDF format.
Photos by IISD/ENB | Francis Dejon
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Presentations
L-R: Co-Chair Nicholas Emiliou, Cyprus; Co-Chair Gustavo Meza-Cuadra, Peru; and Alice Hicuburundi, Secretary, ICP-17
L-R: Jeff Wooster, Dow Chemical Company; Elizabeth Hogan, Global Ghost Gear Initiative; and Rob Kaplan, Closed Loop Fund
L-R: Richard Northcote, Covestro; Georg Caspary, World Bank; and Heidi Savelli, UNEP Global Programme of Action (GPA)
Richard Northcote, Covestro
Georg Caspary, World Bank
Heidi Savelli, UNEP GPA
Richard Northcote, Covestro, presented initiatives of plastic markers in support of marine litter prevention
and waste management.
Rob Kaplan, Closed Loop Fund
Elizabeth Hogan, Global Ghost Gear
Initiative
(GGGI)
Jeff Wooster, Dow Chemical Company
Rob Kaplan, Closed Loop Fund, said that cities spend US$ 5 billion annually to truck, barge and rail waste to landfills, and highlighted opportunities for savings and revenue generation through recycling.
Elizabeth Hogan, GGGI, discussed how GGGI's Working Group 3 is trying to make it economically viable to remove ghost gear from ocean waters.
Jeff Wooster, Dow Chemical Company, underscored the need for multi-stakeholder partnerships to improve
materials management.
Isaías Medina Mejías, Venezuela
John Brincat, EU
Angel Horna, Peru
Gina Guillén-Grillo, Costa Rica
Jo Høvik, Norway
Michel Djimgou Djomeni, Cameroon
John Brincat, EU, in conversation with Natalie Morris-Sharma, Singapore
Kimo Goree, IISD, with Johanna Eriksson, Sweden
L-R: Stefan Kuuskne, Valentina Germani, and Charlotte Salpin, UNDOALOS
L-R: Karen Raubenheimer, University of Wollongong, Australia;
Debby Lee Cohen, Cafeteria Culture; and Camden Howitt,
Sustainable Coastlines
L-R: Andreas Merkl, Ocean Conservancy; Arturo Alfaro Medina,
Institute for the Protection of the Environment (VIDA), Peru;
and Julia
Reisser, The Ocean Cleanup
Andreas Merkl, Ocean Conservancy
Julia
Reisser, The Ocean Cleanup
Arturo Alfaro Medina,
VIDA, Peru
Julia
Reisser, The Ocean Cleanup, presented technologies that her organization uses for extracting,
preventing and intercepting plastic pollution.
Karen Raubenheimer, University of
Wollongong, Australia
Camden Howitt,
Sustainable Coastlines
Debby Lee Cohen, Cafeteria Culture
Camden Howitt, Sustainable Coastlines, presented creative solutions for plastics pollution in the Pacific.
W. Davies Sohier, US
Thembile Joyini, South Africa
Judith Neumann, Germany
Mehdi Remaoun, Algeria
Sigrid Lüber, Ocean Care
Angel Horna, Peru and Michel Djimgou Djomeni, Cameroon
Diego Alejandro Albareda and Verónica Cáceres Chamorro,
Inter-American
Convention for the Protection and Conservation
of Sea Turtles (IAC)