A/RES/63/111
105. Welcomes the World Ocean Conference, to be held in Manado, Indonesia,
from 11 to 15 May 2009, as an opportunity to enhance understanding of the link
between oceans and climate change and the impact of climate change on marine
ecosystems and coastal communities, thus promoting the urgency of mainstreaming
climate change-sensitive policies and enhancing adaptation capacity at all levels,
especially among developing countries and small island developing States;
106. Welcomes the activities of the United Nations Environment Programme
relating to marine debris carried out in cooperation with relevant United Nations
bodies and organizations, and encourages States to further develop partnerships with
industry and civil society to raise awareness of the extent of the impact of marine
debris on the health and productivity of the marine environment and consequent
economic loss;
107. Urges States to integrate the issue of marine debris into national
strategies dealing with waste management in the coastal zone, ports and maritime
industries, including recycling, reuse, reduction and disposal, and to encourage the
development of appropriate economic incentives to address this issue, including the
development of cost recovery systems that provide an incentive to use port reception
facilities and discourage ships from discharging marine debris at sea, and
encourages States to cooperate regionally and subregionally to develop and
implement joint prevention and recovery programmes for marine debris;
108. Encourages States that have not done so to become parties to the
Protocol of 1997 (Annex VI-Regulations for the Prevention of Air Pollution from
Ships) to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships,
1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978 relating thereto, and furthermore to ratify
or accede to the International Convention for the Control and Management of Ships’
Ballast Water and Sediments, 2004, 46 thereby facilitating its early entry into force;
45F
109. Notes the ongoing work of the International Maritime Organization in
accordance with its resolution on International Maritime Organization policies and
practices related to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from ships 47 and the
workplan to identify and develop the mechanism or mechanisms needed to achieve
the limitation or reduction of greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping,
and welcomes ongoing efforts of the Organization in that regard;
46F
110. Urges States to cooperate in correcting the shortfall in port waste
reception facilities in accordance with the action plan to address the inadequacy of
port waste reception facilities developed by the International Maritime
Organization;
111. Recognizes that most of the pollution load of the oceans emanates from
land-based activities and affects the most productive areas of the marine
environment, and calls upon States as a matter of priority to implement the Global
Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Landbased Activities 48 and to take all appropriate measures to fulfil the commitments of
the international community embodied in the Beijing Declaration on furthering the
implementation of the Global Programme of Action; 49
47F
48F
_______________
46
International Maritime Organization, document BWM/CONF/36, annex.
International Maritime Organization, Assembly resolution A.963(23).
48
See A/51/116, annex II.
49
UNEP/GPA/IGR.2/7, annex V.
47
19