REGIONAL WORKSHOP OF EXPERTS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE MARINE MAMMAL ACTION PLAN FOR THE WIDER CARIBBEAN REGION

Bridgetown, Barbados, 18 - 21 July 2005

Representatives from government authorities, NGOs and scientific sectors from around the Wider Caribbean met in Barbados to formulate an Action Plan for Marine Mammals of the region. About 35 experts from around the Wider Caribbean met from 18-21 July in Barbados to formulate and discuss the Action Plan. Among the experts were representatives of the twelve countries that are Parties to the Protocol Concerning Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW), a treaty administered by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP/CEP), based in Kingston, Jamaica.

The CMS Secretariat attended the meeting and gave a presentation highlighting the importance of the Convention of Migratory Species for the SPAW and other agreements.

There are at least 34 species of marine mammals in the region: whales, dolphins, seals and also the West Indian Manatee. These animals, which have all been dwindling in numbers over recent decades, are of significant value to the Caribbean.

Barbados is one of the Parties to the Protocol, which became an international law in 2000. The other Parties are Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, France, Netherlands, Panama, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, the USA and Venezuela.

The Marine Mammals Action Plan will set a framework to protect the populations of whales, dolphins and manatees from a variety of threats, such as entanglement in fishing nets, bycatch, habitat degradation and coastal development. In addition, marine mammals als suffer from pollution, noise and the loss of areas for feeding, breeding or calving.

The Action Plan also aims to promote regional cooperation on research, information and education and enhance the exchange of technical expertise. Controversial issues which got a lot of focus at the meeting, include dolphin trade and whaling. There are concerns about the increase in dolphin trade and tourism activities, such as dolphinaria and swimming with the dolphins.

Recommendations of the Workshop

The Workshop recommends that:

1. The draft MMAP, as revised by the Workshop, be presented to the Third Scientific Technical Advisory Committee (STAC 3), 4-7 October 2005, for consideration and finalization;

2. The current electronic Working Group continues working in collaboration with the SPAW/RAC and the Secretariat for any further refinement and progress which could be required by the STAC for MMAP development;

3. In light of the need to address a number of priority issues regarding marine mammal conservation in the WCR, the following actions be implemented as soon as possible and not wait until the adoption of the MMAP: The Secretariat established close collaboration with CMS and ACCOBAMS and other relevant organizations given the experiences and resources that could be made available for the development and implementation of the MMAP.

The Secretariat explored the possibility of a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) between the Convention of Migratory Species (CMS) and the SPAW Protocol, with a view to furthering the development of the MMAP. For almost 25 years, all States and Territories of the Wider Caribbean region have participated in the Caribbean Environment Programme (CEP), a regional cooperation initiative administered by UNEP.

For further information please contact:

Francisco Rilla: frilla@cms.int
UNEP/CMS Secretariat, Bonn, Germany

Visit the official website of the UNEP Caribbean Environmental Programme (UNEP/CEP)

[ http://www.cep.unep.org ]