Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission

Reports of Meetings of Experts and Equivalent Bodies

IOC-IUCN-NOAA

Consultative Meeting on Large

Marine Ecosystems (LMEs)

Fifth Session

Paris, France

3-4 March 2003

UNESCO 2003

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PREFACE 4

1.0 INTRODUCTION 4

2.0 REPORTS ON THE PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION OF LARGE MARINE

ECOSYSTEM ASSESSMENTS AND MANAGEMENT PROJECTS 4

2.1 BENGUELA CURRENT LME 5

2.2 YELLOW SEA LME 5

2.3 CANARY CURRENT LME 6

2.4 GUINEA CURRENT LME 6

2.5 SOMALI CURRENT/.AGULHAS CURRENT LMEs 6

2.6 NORTH ATLANTIC LMES 7

2.7 THE BALTIC SEA LME 7

2.8 BAY OF BENGAL LME 8

2.9 GULF OF MEXICO/PACIFIC CENTRAL AMERICAN/CARIBBEAN LMEs 9

2.10 HUMBOLDT CURRENT LME 9

3.0 ACTIVITIES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS DURING 2002 9

3.1 MULTI-MEDIA INFORMATION NETWORKS 9

3.2 WORLD MAP UPDATES CONTINUE 9

3.3 INTER-AGENCY COLLABORATION 10

3.4 ECOPATH MODEL APPLICATIONS 10

3.5 COST BENEFIT ANALYSES 10

3.6 MARINE PROTECTED AREAS 10

3.7 INTERAGENCY LINKAGE ON BENGUELA PROJECT 10

3.8 GOOS AND LME COORDINATION 11

3.9 GUINEA CURRENT, SECOND PHASE 11

3.10 GEF APPROVES IMPLEMENTATION FOR

YSLME AND BCLME PROJECTS 11

3.11 BLOCK B GRANTS ENDORSED 11

3.12 CAPACITY BUILDING INCORPORATED IN LME PROGRAMMES 12

4.0 THE HUMAN DIMENSIONS OF LMEs (SOCIOECONOMICS AND

GOVERNANCE MODULES) 12

5.0 GOOS 12

6.0 UNIDO 13

7.0 MARINE PROTECTED AREAS 13

8.0 ARCTIC POPs 13

9.0 LME PROGRAM OFFICE REPORT 14

9.1 PROJECT DEVELOPMENT 14

9.2 BIOMASS YIELDS AND CATCH STATISTICS 14

9.3 MODIFICATION OF DESIGNATED LMEs 14

9.4 GLOBAL INTERNATIONAL WATERS ASSESSMENT 15

9.5 OUTREACH 15

9.6 MEETINGS AND WORKSHOPS 15

9.7 LME WEBSITE WORK AND VOLUME PREPARATIONS 16

ANNEX I AGENDA 17

ANNEX II LIST OF PARTICIPANTS 19

ANNEX III “A New Imperative for Improving Management of Large Marine Ecosystems” 22

PREFACE

The Fifth Consultative Committee Meeting on Large Marine Ecosystems (LMEs) was held on 3-4 March 2003. The consultation was convened by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), the US Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the World Conservation Union (IUCN). It was sponsored by IUCN and the Office of Naval Research International Field Office (ONRIFO), London, and hosted by IOC at UNESCO headquarters, Paris, France. The meeting was co-chaired by IOC Executive Secretary, Dr. Patricio Bernal, Dr. Kenneth Sherman of NOAA and Dr. Carl Gustav Lundin, of IUCN. The meeting agenda is given in Annex 1, and a list of attendees is given in Annex 2.

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Dr. Bernal called the meeting to order at 0900 on Monday, 03 March, and welcomed all participants to UNESCO. He spoke to the Committee about the continuing interest on the part of IOC in the development and implementation of the science-based LME program and the generous funding support of the Global Environment Facility to developing countries in Africa, Asia, eastern Europe and Latin America using the International Waters focal area for improving conditions in their respective coastal regions.

Dr. Sherman reported that the combined efforts of the World Conservation Union (IUCN), the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) resulted in considerable progress since the last meeting held in January 2002. He discussed the recently published paper “A new imperative for improving management of large marine ecosystems” (Annex 3) and provided additional information on LME projects. Seventy-two countries are involved in actual projects, and 54 countries are involved in preparing GEF projects. A total of 126 countries are receiving GEF grant financing at a sum of $225 million and an additional $500 million in actual in-kind support. Dr. Sherman also reported on the successes at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, and some of the action items to focus on which include strengthening regional cooperation, introduction of the marine ecosystem management approach by 2010, and a goal of recovering depleted fish stocks by 2015. He discussed using new technologies and incorporating in situ observations with remotely sensed observations via satellite to provide a three dimensional view of the coastal ocean to better understand productivity in the LMEs. Dr. Sherman acknowledged the financial support given by ONRIFO London Office and thanked Dr. J. Miller, Associate Director for Ocean, Atmosphere and Space Research for participation in the meeting.

Dr. Lundin reported that the World Conservation Union is also committed to moving forward the implementation of LME projects in developing countries in partnership with IOC and NOAA. He provided the Committee with a status report on the IUCN activities concerning coral bleaching, marine protected areas, and governance issues.

2.0 REPORTS ON THE PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION OF LARGE MARINE ECOSYSTEM ASSESSMENTS AND MANAGEMENT PROJECTS

The Committee welcomed a series of presentations on the status of LME planning and implementation for projects around the globe.

2.1 BENGUELA CURRENT LME

Dr. Michael O’Toole presented the Committee with a briefing on the successful implementation of the Benguela Current LME (BCLME) project and the status of the Strategic Action Program (SAP) to be initiated during this phase of the project. Dr. O’Toole reported that the project is 10 months into implementation. The SAP phase is to be funded at a level of $38.3 million. Of this amount, $15.3 million is to be financed by the GEF, to cover “incremental costs” over five years. The matching funds of $23 million represent baseline commitments to the project in personnel and facilities made available by Angola, Namibia, and South Africa, the three participating BCLME border countries.

Root causes of transboundary issues focused on the uniquely high productivity of the ecosystem and the serious shortcomings in realizing the full socioeconomic potential because of overfishing, harmful algal blooms, and less than optimal industrial practices in offshore oil production, diamond mining, and fishing practices, particularly in relation to resource allocation between industrial and artisanal fishermen.

In addition to the joint fisheries surveys and assessments by the participating countries, the principal ministries serving as stewards of the environment and natural resources in each of the three countries signed and adopted the Benguela Current LME Strategic Action Program. In addition, they established an organization under the terms of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), entitled The BCLME Programme, complete with 10 Principles to be followed, and 7 new Institutional Arrangements to carry the BCLME Programme forward. The key instrument for Programme implementation is the Interim Benguela Current Commission (IBCC). It was established to strengthen regional cooperation and be fully supported by a Programme Coordinating Unit (PCU) and subsidiary bodies, such as Advisory Centres and Groups. The IBCC will become a fully functional Benguela Current Commission (BCC) with a supporting Secretariat within a period of five years after formal commencement of the BCLME Programme. Five Advisory Groups will support the IBCC: (1) Advisory Group on Fisheries and Living Resources, (2) Advisory Group on Marine Environmental Variability and Ecosystem Health, (3) Advisory Group on Marine Pollution, (4) Advisory Group on Legal Affairs and Maritime Law, and (5) Advisory Group on Information and Data Exchange. The full title of the Strategic Action Programme is entitled Integrated Management, Sustainable Development and Protection of the Benguela Current Large Marine Ecosystem (BCLME) and is available at http://www.bclme.org/news/index.htm.

2.2 YELLOW SEA LME

Professor Qisheng Tang reported on the completion of the initial Block B phase of the Yellow Sea project funded with $350K from the GEF and administered by the UNDP offices in Beijing and New York. China and Korea are now cooperating in the final planning stage of a 5-year $25 million GEF project for the Yellow Sea LME. The implementation phase of the project is to be initiated in autumn 2003. The project is based on a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) conducted jointly by scientists and marine policy experts from both countries. The key components of the project will include joint surveys and assessments of the fish and fisheries of the Yellow Sea LME, assessments of the carrying capacity, pollution, and health of the ecosystem. Special attention is to be focused on the socioeconomic benefits to be realized from improvements to the environment and sustainable development and management of the goods and services provided by the ecosystem for the densely populated coastal urban centers located along both the Korean and Chinese coasts of the ecosystem.

Professor Tang also described changes observed in the Yellow Sea, Bohai Sea, and East China Sea associated with a climate regime shift as well as fishing pressures. He noted that management of fisheries and mariculture is critical and that water quality is key to maintaining both biodiversity as well as biomass. In his presentation, Professor Tang described how zooplankton biomass had declined over the years, and how the anchovy has become the dominant species of fish in the YSLME, consistent with the Pauly-Christensen thesis of ‘Fishing down the Food Chain’. He stressed the complimentarity among the more basic science-oriented GLOBEC studies and the applied surveys and assessments being made during YSLME implementation to support joint Chinese and Korean management practices.

2.3 CANARY CURRENT LME

The draft Canary Current Block B LME Project planning document is presently under review by the participating countries. Included in this cooperative activity are representatives from the seven coastal countries bordering the LME on the northwest Africa coast, including Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Gambia, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, and Guinea. The countries are working with FAO and UNEP on finalizing the terms of the project. The PDF-B is expected to be completed by June 2004.

During the planning phase emphasis will be on preparation of a TDA and SAP as in the other GEF-funded LME projects in West Africa. Fish and fisheries are a transboundary issue critical to the food security for the people inhabiting the region, particularly in Senegal and Mauritania, and will be a major focus of the project.

2.4 GUINEA CURRENT LME

Dr. Chika Ukwe provided a description of the development and implementation of the second phase of the Guinea Current Project. The second PDF-B was implemented in February 2003 with UNDP and UNEP as GEF Implementing agencies and UNIDO as the executing agency. The project is to be extended over the entire spatial dimension of the Guinea Current LME and will include participation of 10 more countries, including Sierra Leone, São Tomé and Principe, Liberia, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Gabon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Congo, and Angola, as well as the six original countries of Benin, Cameroon, Côte D’Ivoire, Ghana, Nigeria, and Togo. UNIDO is arranging for industrial stakeholder participation in this GEF project. The petroleum and gas producing companies ooperating along the coasts of the Guinea Current are expected to play an important role in co-financing the project. In addition to fish surveys and assessments, reduction of pollution, and increased capacity building, Phase 2 of the Project will emphasize mangrove rehabilitation activities, as these are nursery areas for populations of important shrimp and fishery resources of the GCLME.

Website: http://www.africaonline.co.ci/AfricaOnline/societes/goglme/goglme.html

2.5 SOMALI CURRENT/ AGULHAS CURRENT LMEs

The lead UN agencies for the Agulhas and Somali Current LME projects are the World Bank, UNEP and the UNDP. The PDF Block B for the offshore component of the project is being executed by the World Bank. The PDF-B for the Somali/Agulhas Project is being executed by UNDP with NOAA’s scientific and technological assistance. Interests of the participating countries include: (1) fisheries, and (2) pollution and ecosystem health in relation to food security, and regional economic development. One important component of the ecosystem and will be included in the project design. Habitat restoration interests include reduction of stress on coral reefs and shoreline erosion. Tanzania is prepared to carry out systematic assessments, in collaboration with Kenyan marine specialists, of marine resources and establish an adaptive management framework in support of the long-term sustainability of transboundary marine resources of the Somali Current LME.

The World Bank PDF-B and the UNDP-led PDF-B are being prepared by the following countries: Comoros, France (Reunion and Mayotte), Kenya, Madagascar, Mozambique, Seychelles, South Africa, and Tanzania. The PDF B being executed by the UNDP is entitled “Ecosystem Assessments of the Agulhas and Somali Large Marine Ecosystems.” It is to integrate a three component approach that would include an offshore fisheries assessment activity to be executed by the World Bank, and the Agulhas and Somali Current LME projects to be executed by UNDP, and a nearshore coastal assessment activity to be executed by UNEP in partnership with IUCN.

2.6 NORTH ATLANTIC LMEs

Dr. Hein Rune Skjoldal briefed the committee on activities conducted in North Atlantic LMEs as they relate to ICES. Discussion focused on the hydrographic regime of LMEs in relation to commercial fish populations. As fish spawn and eggs are hatched into small larvae, they drift as plankton with the current. These populations need geographical closure of the life cycle, and this can be achieved through journeys of the adult fish in migrations to and from spawning grounds. This discussion led to the hydrodynamics of the Greenland Sea, Iceland Shelf and the Norwegian Sea LMEs and the various stocks found in those waters.

A strong case can be made for moving towards better integration of monitoring and assessment of ecosystems. Climatic forcing can be a source for natural variability as well as an important influence on predators and prey in the ecosystem and the impact of fishing on non-commercial species. Human activities must be considered as well. Fisheries, environmental and meteorological specialists are all involved with collecting and analyzing information for the ecosystem in which they are operating. Close collaboration among these specialists and the management branches they support is essential. The Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) can contribute in supplying data and information to support these related activities.

At the 5th North Sea Conference in March 2002, the ministers agreed to establish an ecosystem approach to management in the North Sea so that biodiversity will be conserved and sustainability ensured. ICES has elaborated a definition of an ecosystem approach to management in two of its Advisory Committees, and the European Commission is developing a marine strategy to protect and conserve the marine environment. Additionally, ICES has established ecosystem-oriented groups for the North Sea and Baltic Sea LMEs, and is playing a coordinating role in the Baltic Sea regional project.

2.7 THE BALTIC SEA LME

Dr. Jan Thulin reported on activities for this project and was happy to report to the committee that after 8 years of continued effort, the Project funded at $12M moved into the implementation phase starting 17 March 2003. The project will introduce ecosystem-based assessment and management to the emerging democratic countries in the eastern Baltic including Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia. After developing the TDA and SAP during the first phase of the program, the project will now be followed by a 5-year activity period wherein the LME modules - productivity, fish and fisheries, pollution and ecosystem health, socioeconomics, and governance - will be operationalized in accordance with cooperative and integrated surveys and assessments of nearshore and Baltic-proper resources and environment. Activities will be focused on eutrophication, contaminants, overfishing, and invasive species. The ICES will be providing scientific expertise and coordination skills to the project, The International Baltic Sea Fisheries Commission (IBSFC) will be responsible for preparation and evaluation of fish stock assessments, and HELCOM will focus on activities to reduce pollution-induced stress on the Baltic ecosystem. Dr. Jan Thulin is serving as the Project Coordinator on behalf of ICES.

2.8 BAY OF BENGAL LME (BOBLME)

Dr. Philomene Verlaan is the new FAO Regional Coordinator for the BOBLME project and will guide the preparation of the TDA and the Strategic Action Plan for the sustainable management of the Bay of Bengal. She arrived on duty 25 December 2002. The GEF/LME project executing agency is the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the implementing agency is the World Bank. The eight participating countries include Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

The PDF Block B Phase of the BOBLME Programme is hosted by the Government of India, and is supporting the office and telecommunications expenses of the Programme, which is based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, South India. Support for the project is high among the participating members, as the countries have recognized the need for comprehensive, integrated coastal and near shore management.

The First Regional Workshop of the BOBLME Programme was hosted by the Government of Thailand in Pattaya, February 17-21, 2003, and the BOBLME Programme Steering Committee (PSC) met on February 19, 2003. The Workshop was designed to foster multi-dimensional, regional team-building and stimulate “brainstorming” to define and address the key transboundary issues facing the living marine resources and the related environmental health of the BOBLME. The main objectives of the Workshop were to reach consensus on these issues and to set the scope for the Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA) process, including tentative identification of particularly critical areas for which regional thematic papers should be prepared by regional experts, and to give the country participants involved in the BOBLME Programme, and in particular in the National Task Force part of the process, an active experience in working with LME issues in the context envisaged by the BOBLME Programme. Each BOBLME member country presented a national overview of the principal threats to its living marine resources (and fisheries in particular) and environmental health and suggested priority actions to address these issues at the LME level, which the BOBLME Programme will contribute towards solving. The presentations and discussions provided the conceptual background for the structured analysis in Working Groups that took place on the second and third days of the Workshop, coordinated by an international facilitator. Overexploitation of living resources, status of stocks & assessment capability, critical habitats (especially mangroves & coral reefs), land-based sources of pollution, livelihood & food security, and legal mechanisms & instruments for enforcement & management will be the subject of Regional Studies for the BOBLME Programme.

The Programme Steering Committee Meeting developed timelines for completion of the BOBLME PDF Block B Phase and includes that all countries are to have held their first National Task Force meeting by 31 March 2003, all National Workshops will be held by 1 November 2003, the 2nd Regional Workshop will be held in April 2004 (venue TBA), the BOBLME GEF Project Document agreed by all countries to be presented in June 2004, and the final Project Document submitted in time for the GEF Council in October 2004.

2.9 GULF OF MEXICO/PACIFIC CENTRAL AMERICAN/CARIBBEAN LME’S

Dr. Sherman briefed the committee on activities underway in the Gulf of Mexico, Pacific Central American Coastal, and Caribbean Sea LMEs. A PDF Block B has been submitted by UNDP (Implementing Agency) and UNIDO (Executing Agency) for the Gulf of Mexico LME, and the Caribbean LME Concept document, prepared by UNDP in cooperation with IOCARIBE, has been approved by the GEF for pipeline entry; a PDF-B is presently in preparation. The Pacific Central American LME project is in the planning stage. The US Government in collaboration with Caribbean island nations is working on plans for a major summit entitled White Water to Blue Water, scheduled for March 2004 in Miami where thematic sessions on integrated watershed management, marine ecosystems-based management, sustainable tourism, and marine transportation issues will be addressed. A large and diverse group of marine experts will have an opportunity to contribute to improving environmental conditions in the wider Caribbean region, and work towards promoting better-managed and productive ecosystems to support sustained economies and livelihoods.

2.10 HUMBOLDT CURRENT LME

Dr. Rodolfo Serra briefed the Committee on actions relating to the Humboldt Current LME. UNIDO is the executing agency under the direction of Mr. Pablo Huidobro; UNDP is the implementing agency. The Chief Technical Advisor is Dr. Antonio Diaz-de-Leon of Mexico. Both Peru and Chile are enthusiastic about getting the project started. A PDF Block-B grant of $344K has been awarded for the period July 2002-July 2003. At the end of Block B funding, a Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis and preliminary Strategic Action Programme will be in place. The sustained integrated management of the Humboldt Current LME resources is the focus of the TDA development. The TDA is to be completed in June 2003, and a Strategic Action Programme is to be completed by September 2003.

3. 0 ACTIVITIES AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS DURING 2002

This section briefly summarizes actions taken over the past 12 months to implement recommendations of the January 2002 Consultative Meeting on LMEs:

3.1. The Committee, in recognition of the unique “country driven” approach in the development and implementation of GEF supported LME projects, recommends that communication activities using multi-media methodologies, continue to inform the international marine environmental and resource institutions and networks of project accomplishments.

Action: NOAA, IUCN, and IOC continue to use Internet technologies via project websites to help inform the international community of LME project activities.

3.2 IUCN, in collaboration with NOAA and other relevant organizations should continue efforts to update the LME world map.

Action: IUCN and NOAA, in collaboration with the University of Rhode Island have produced the 3rd edition of the Large Marine Ecosystems of the World map which is available in electronic format on the LME website (http://www.lme.noaa.gov/). The map is GIS compatible, and provides LME boundaries, shape files, and bathymetry and elevation inf