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In the framework of this year’s G7 Ministers of Environment Meeting, UN Environment/Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) in collaboration with the French Presidency and support by the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea, organized a successful second Workshop on the Implementation of the G7 Action Plan to Combat Marine Litter, in Synergy with the Regional Seas Conventions.

With up to 12 million tonnes of plastic entering our oceans every year, marine plastic pollution is one of the most pressing environmental challenges of our time. It is a problem without a silver bullet and addressing it in an effective manner requires the involvement of all. Governments need to legislate, the private sector needs to innovate and citizens need to be engaged and aware.

Participants from 16 Mediterranean countries attended the training workshop “MSP as a tool for the implementation of ICZM Protocol in the Mediterranean”, which was held in Zagreb (Croatia), on 9-10 April 2019, with the view to supporting the establishment of a common basis and understanding of the Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) implementation across the Mediterranean region, within the Barcelona Convention system and in line with its provisions and main principles.

Pair trawling is when two ships travel in parallel several hundred metres apart towing a huge net which indiscriminately scoops up marine animals in its path.

The Regional Forum on Sustainable Development (RFSD) is a multi-stakeholder platform for SDG solutions, organized by the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in close cooperation with the Regional UN System. The Regional Forum follows up on and reviews the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the UNECE region.

The kick-off meeting of the programme “Developing and strengthening an effective Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance (SPAMI) management”, was held in Torre del Cerrano, Italy on 26 February 2019. The new programme represents a major component of the Bilateral Cooperation Agreement signed between the Italian Ministry of Environment Land Use and Sea (IMELS) and the UN Environment - Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) – Barcelona Convention Secretariat, in support of MAP programme of work activities.

The continuous growth in the amount of solid waste thrown away, and the very slow rate of degradation of most items, are together leading to a gradual increase in marine litter found at sea, on the sea floor and coastal shores. In the Adriatic, MAP is cooperating with the Italian Ministry for Environment, Land and Sea Protection (IMELS) to provide concrete support to enhance marine litter management.  In the Adriatic, 1.5 kg of waste produced per habitant per day on average

On 10-14 December 2018, MAP will participate to the Fish Forum 2018 organized by the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (FAO-GFCM). The event will encompass oceanographic, social science and economic perspectives on fisheries research. It will review leading work that has been carried out, while also addressing the pillars for the development of fisheries science.

The Mediterranean forest area has increased by two percent between 2010 and 2015, resulting in a rise of 1.8 million hectares – about the size of Slovenia, says a new FAO-Plan Bleu report "State of Mediterranean Forests 2018". But forests in the Mediterranean have also been considerably affected by degradation and are increasingly in jeopardy from climate change, population rise, wildfires and water scarcity, the report warns.   

Over 4,000 participants from around the world will meet from November 26 to 28, 2018 at the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference in Nairobi, Kenya. At this occasion MAP and Plan Bleu have joined force with the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) and WWF to organize a side event focusing on the Mediterranean. Ocean-related activities in the Mediterranean Sea represent 20% of the world’s annual Global Marine Product in an area which makes up only 1% of the world’s oceans.

The updated list of endangered or threatened species found in the Mediterranean entered into force in September 2018. It now includes 10 additional bird species classified as endangered or threatened. This list is established under the Specially Protected Areas and Biological Diversity Protocol (SPA/BD Protocol) of the Barcelona Convention. The Mediterranean is home of several hundred bird species

The Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award aims to recognize and reward the efforts of local authorities to improve the environment and the quality of life and promote sustainable development in Mediterranean coastal towns and cities. It also aims to encourage local authorities to move towards a more environment friendly future and enable them to act as a role-model to inspire other towns and cities.

On October 9 and 10, MAP organized a regional meeting on ‘Marine Litter Best Practices’ in Izmir, Turkey. The meeting brought together Mediterranean Governments, experts and NGOs. One of the priority issue discussed was the phasing out of single-use plastic bags. Today, the threats plastic pose are more and more known, and studies show that phasing out plastic bags will not only benefit the environment, but also the economy.    The age of plastic

On 24 October, the United Nations (UN) and Greek flags will fly along-side each other on the Acropolis of Athens. Representatives of the United Nations, of the Hellenic Authorities and of the Region of Attica will gather in the cradle of democracy to watch the flag raising ceremony. The flag hoisting ceremony will be followed by a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Syntagma Square. The wreath will be laid by Gaetano Leone, the Head of the UN lead agency in Greece, UN Environment.

The Mediterranean is one of the most overfished region in the world, with disastrous impacts on our marine ecosystems and biodiversity, imperiling livelihoods and economic prosperity. On 22-23 October, Gaetano Leone, MAP’s coordinator, participated in the 42 Session of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM) organized in Rome. He highlighted here ongoing cooperation efforts, aiming to achieve SDG14 in a coordinated manner, in line with the Memorandum of Understanding between GFCM and MAP.

On 15 October 2018, the Mediterranean Assistance Unit (MAU) celebrates its 25th anniversary. For a quarter century, MAU provided immediate expert assistance at no cost for the Mediterranean coastal States to respond to oil and chemical spills at sea.  The Mediterranean Assistance Unit (MAU)

Following the successful 2016 edition hosted by the USA, the 2017 Our Ocean Conference, hosted by the EU, took place in Malta on 5 and 6 October 2017 and was attended by a large number of eminent persons, senior government representatives, civil society and the private sector. The Our Ocean Conference aims to mobilize joint solutions and to secure ambitious commitments towards the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans.

For this Mediterranean Cost Day, numerous experts are gathering on 25 September in Split the Croatian city hosting PAP/RAC, “the Mediterranean Coastal Management Centre”, to discuss past successes and shortcomings of Mediterranean coastal management, as well as new environmental challenges that require a more ambitious and urgent action. The Mediterranean Sea, an important source of employment and economic growth

1.350 km long marine corridor, located off the Spanish Mediterranean coast, has been declared ‘Marine Protected Area’ by the Government of Spain in June 2018. The measure will benefit around 3,500 fin whales migrating through this strip of water, and more than 19,000 loggerhead turtles and 6,000 stripped dolphins. The cetacean corridor 

18.07.2018

Supreme is a two-year project (January 2017–December 2018), co-funded by the EC – DG Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE), focusing on two key objectives: To support the implementation of Maritime Spatial Planning (Directive 2014/89/EU) in the EU Member States of the Eastern Mediterranean. To launch and carry out concrete and cross-border MSP initiatives between these States. The project involves partners from four Mediterranean countries, namely Croatia, Greece, Italy, and Slovenia, as well as UN Environment/MAP.

On the occasion of its 40th anniversary, the Plan Bleu Regional Activity Center of the Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) held an international conference on environment and development in the Mediterranean in Paris, on 5 June 2018, also coinciding with World Environment Day. The event, entitled “Environment and development in the Mediterranean, yesterday, today and tomorrow” was attended by French authorities, representatives of Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention, partner and civil society organizations, as well as representatives of the MAP system.

The Mediterranean Sea is one of the areas most affected by marine litter in the world with plastic comprising up to 95% of waste accumulated on shorelines, the ocean surface, or sea floor. Approximately 0.5 billion litter items are currently lying on the Mediterranean Seafloor while concentrations floating plastic are comparable with those in the five oceanic garbage patches reaching over 600 items per square kilometer.

Both courses will be delivered through massive open online course (MOOC) access. The MOOC: sobre Basura Marina, developed in partnership with the Global Partnership on Marine Litter (GPML) is being offered in Spanish for the first time.  The course is a follow-on to the previously offered English language version. The course commences on 29 January 2018. For more information please go to www.marinelittermooc.org.

10.05.2018 Cyprus, Greece, and Israel have signed the Implementation Agreement on the Sub-Regional Marine Oil Pollution Contingency Plan. The objective of the Plan is an effective reaction to spills and to facilitate the co-operation among the three countries in the field of oil pollution preparedness and response. The Plan was signed on Tuesday, 8 May along with other instruments for the cooperation among the three countries.