Ecologically or Biologically Significant Areas (EBSAs) in the Convention on Biological Diversity Arctic EBSA workshop as an example Ville Karvinen / SYKE HELCOM STATE & CONSERVATION 3-2015 12.11.2015
CBD EBSA process The EBSAs are special areas in the ocean that serve important purposes, in one way or another, to support the healthy functioning of oceans and the many services that it provides. Scientific Criteria for Identifying Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) Uniqueness or rarity Special importance for life-history stages of species Importance for threatened, endangered or declining species and/or habitats Vulnerability, fragility, sensitivity, or slow recovery Biological productivity Biological diversity Naturalness 2
CBD EBSA page: https://www.cbd.int/ebsa/ 3
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 Participants 7 Arctic States Others Finland, Sweden, Norway, Russia, USA, Canada, Greenland / Denmark SBSTTA Bureau, Arctic Council Working Group on the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme, Arctic Council Working Group on the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Global Ocean Biodiversity Initiative (GOBI), International Council for the, Exploration of the Sea (ICES), International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Global Marine and Polar Programme, Inuit Circumpolar Council, Marine Mammal Council, Natural Resources Defense Council, North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission (NEAFC), OSPAR Commission Secretariat, Saami Council, United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies and WWF Russia 4
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Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 All countries except Russia informed the WS that they will not propose any EBSAs in their area but will inform on their national processes Canada has gone through 4 separate processes during 2005 2013 and has indentified 59 national EBSAs 6
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 All countries except Russia informed the WS that they will not propose any EBSAs in their area but will inform on their national processes Greenland (represented by the Kingdom of Denmark) has done evaluation using the IMO PSSA criteria and the AMSA IIC report has indentified areas to be further evaluated 7
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 All countries except Russia informed the WS that they will not propose any EBSAs in their area but will inform on their national processes Norway has done evaluation for MPAs and has proposed areas in the Spitsbergen for OSPAR MPAs 8
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 All countries except Russia informed the WS that they will not propose any EBSAs in their area but will inform on their national processes USA has several national processes to identify EBSAs 9
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 All countries except Russia informed the WS that they will not propose any EBSAs in their area but will inform on their national processes Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) proposed the North Water Polynya (situated between Greenland and Canada) as a transboundary EBSA area. The proposal was deferred. 10
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 All countries except Russia informed the WS that they will not propose any EBSAs in their area but will inform on their national processes Russia proposed 9 areas in the Russian marine area / EEZ for consideration and expressed their concern that the other countries decision not to propose their EBSAs underestimates the role of CBD and complicates the process in the future 11
Otsikko Arial Black 24pt sininen The CBD Arctic Regional Workshop to Facilitate the the Description of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs), 3 7 March 2014, Helsinki, Finland 12
Example: The Arctic EBSA workshop, Helsinki 3 7. March 2014 WS split into working groups to reflect on National Arctic EBSA processes Biological and ecological significance of the Arctic in the global context Challenges presented by the approach taken where only areas in the high seas are considered (as biological characteristics often are transboundary and not limited to the high seas) Role of Native Peoples and local communities in the EBSA process Means to include socio-cultural criteria in identifying protected areas and in the sustainable use of biodiversity Dynamics and heterogeneity of sea ice and the ecosystems depending on it Data availability on arctic birds, marine mammals and benthic organisms and it's implications for this kind of biodiversity assessment in the Arctic 13
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Appendix 1 Map 2. Marine Protected Areas in Finland Bothnian Sea to Bothnian Bay. Page 2 of 2
Appendix 1 Map 1. Marine Protected Areas in Finland Gulf of Finland to Bothnian Sea. Page 1 of 2
Baltic EBSAs? Pekka Tuuri 18