Arctic Ecosystem Risk and RemediationAAAS Meeting, St. Louis, MO 18 Feb 2006

An Ecosystem-Based Approach to Management of Arctic LMEs:

Experience of the Global Environment Facility

Andrew HudsonPrincipal Technical Advisor,

International WatersUnited Nations Development Programme –

Global Environment Facility

What is the Global Environment Facility

(GEF)? Financial mechanism for major MEAs:

UNFCC, CBD, UNCCD, Stockholm, Montreal Protocol, Focal areas: Biodiversity, Climate Change,

International Waters, ODS; New: POPs, Land Degradation

Partnership between UN agencies and Int’l. Financial Institutions UNDP, UNEP, WB = Implementing Agencies EBRD, IADB, ADB, AfDB, IFAD, FAO, UNIDO =

Expanded Executing Agencies GEF Secretariat

~$8 billion in grants since 1991 ~40% CC, ~35% BD, ~12% IW, ~5% ODS, ~5% LD,

~3% POPs

GEF - Threats to International GEF - Threats to International Waters & People, Ecosystems, Waters & People, Ecosystems,

and Developmentand Development Pollution: Water unusable, ecosystem impacts, human

health Inefficient Water Use & lack of integrated water

resources management: Inter-state conflicts, loss of livelihoods, ecosystem impacts, climate change imprint

Overfishing/Depleted Oceans: Ecosystem disruption, species extinction, livelihoods & $ 60 billion/year in trade in jeopardy

Aquatic Habitat & Species Loss: Loss of spawning & nursery areas, storm surge protection, livelihoods, carbon sinks, etc.

Invasive Aquatic Species: Global economic damage est’d. $100 billion/year; ship ballast water a key vector

Challenge to meet MDGs & WSSD targets because of fresh water and marine resource mismanagement/conflicts

Peace, stability, security, economic development at risk

Why Transboundary Waters?

261 large river/lake basins cross boundaries of two or more countries

145 countries have territory within one or more of these international basins

~85% of world’s 64 LMEs shared by two or more countries

E.g. transboundary the ‘norm’, not the exception, for world’s waters

Weak or non-existent regional governance arrangements (institutions, policies, legal frameworks) for most shared waterbodies

GEF International Waters GEF International Waters Operational Strategy (1995)Operational Strategy (1995)

“International waters” includes the oceans, large marine ecosystems, enclosed or semi-enclosed seas and estuaries as well as rivers, lakes, groundwater systems, and wetlands with transboundary drainage basins or common borders

GEF Strategy:

Assist groups of countries to better understand the environmental concerns of their international waters and work collaboratively to address them;

Build the capacity of existing institutions (or, if appropriate, developing the capacity through new institutional arrangements) to utilize a more comprehensive and integrated approach for addressing transboundary water-related environmental concerns

Implementing measures that address the priority transboundary environmental and water resources concerns, utilizing full range of technical, economic, financial, regulatory, and institutional measures needed to operationalize sustainable development strategies for international waters.

GEF International Waters Portfolio

~$275 m. to 15 LME programmes

LME/GEF Project Associated Regional Seas Convention/Action Plan

GEF Implementing

Agency

Executing Agency & Partner(s)

GEF Grant(s) (~ = in prep)

Baltic Sea Helsinki WB HELCOM $18 m.

Red Sea Jeddah WB, UNDP,UNEP PERSGA $19 m.

South China Sea Action Plan for Seas of East Asia

UNEP EAS/RCU $19 m.

Canary Current LME Abidjan UNEP FAO TBD

Benguela Current LME Abidjan UNDP UNOPS, BENEFIT

$15 m.

Agulhas/Somali Current LMEs Nairobi UNDP UNOPS, WB, UNEP

$12.2 m.

Yellow Sea NW Pacific Action Plan UNDP UNOPS $14.4 m.

Humboldt Current LME Lima UNDP UNIDO ~$5 m.

Gulf of Mexico Cartagena UNDP UNIDO ~$8 m.

Partnerships for Environmental Management of Seas of E. Asia - PEMSEA (5 LMEs)

Action Plan for Seas of East Asia & SDS/SEA

UNDP IMO, UNOPS $24.2 m.~$11 m.

Caribbean Sea Cartagena UNDP IOC/UNESCO ~$9 m.

Mediterranean Sea Barcelona UNEP MEDU-MAP $6 m.+

Black Sea Bucharest UNDP, WB,UNEP UNOPS, BSC $91 m.

Bay of Bengal Action Plan for S. Asian Seas & BOBP

WB FAO $12.1 m.

Innovative Approaches to Regional Cooperation in

Transboundary Waters Management Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis (TDA)

Prioritize transboundary environmental and water resource issues, environmental & socioeconomic impacts, root causes

~25 completed Strategic Action Programme (SAP)

Policy, legal, institutional reforms & investments to address priority issues in TDA

~25 completed Strong consonance with 5 LME Modules

Productivity, Fish & Fisheries, Pollution & Ecosystem Health, Socioeconomics, Governance

TDA/SAP course prepared by GEF agencies to codify experience and best practice; now available for global delivery

Linkages between TDA/SAP & 5 LME Modules

LME Module

TDA SAP

1. Productivity TB issue, threats, root cause analysis

Regional & national reforms to maintain productivity

2. Fish resources and fisheries

TB issue, threats, root cause analysis

Regional & national reforms to sustain fisheries

3. Pollution & Ecosystem Health

TB issue, threats, root cause analysis

Regional & national reforms to reduce pollution and sustain ecosystem

4. Socioeconomics Socioeconomic impact analysis, incl. prioritization of issues

Economic instruments, investments, etc. as tools for SAP implementation

5. Governance Governance analysis; stakeholder analysis

Legal, policy & institutional reforms; stakeholder involvement (PS & civil society)

DEVELOPMENT OF THE TDA

Initial identification and prioritization of transboundary environmental and water resources problems

Socioeconomic analysis of impacts/consequences of agreed transboundary problems

Final prioritization of transboundary problems

Identify immediate, underlying and root causes of problems (Causal Chain Analysis – CCA)

Undertake a governance analysisDraft the TDA

THE STRATEGIC ACTION PROGRAMME

The Strategic Action Programme is a process of reaching political consensus on the policy, legal and institutional reforms, investments and capacity building requirements needed to address the priority transboundary issues identified in the TDA.

It requires the best possible technical advice and is based on the principle of collaborative problem solving

Requires broad intersectoral participation (IMCs) to facilitate addressing sectoral issues at root cause level

STEPS FOR DEVELOPING THE SAPDevelop a long term vision for the shared

waterbody including Ecosystem/Water Resource Quality Objectives

Brainstorm ways to attain the Eco/WR QOsAssess the acceptability of the options,

including: technical feasibility, as well as economic and political

Set short-term targets and priority actionsDevelop M & E indicatorsDraft the SAP

SAP IMPLEMENTATION Adoption of the SAP – Ministerial Conference Donors Conference & other SAP resource

mobilization Development of SAP implementation

interventions by GEF & other donors Monitoring of SAP implementation –

adoption and monitoring of GEF Process, Stress Reduction and Environmental Status Indicators

Adaptive Management Strategic Partnerships between GEF

agencies and donor partners

GEF LMEs - Regional Ocean Governance progress

SAPs/equiv completed/advanced (11) Black Sea, Red Sea, Mediterranean Sea,

Pacific Warm Pool LME, South China Sea LME, Yellow Sea LME, East Asian Seas (SDS/SEA), Benguela Current LME, Guinea Current LME, Baltic Sea, Caspian Sea

SAPs in preparation (6) Bay of Bengal LME, Agulhas/Somali Current

LMEs, Caribbean LME, Gulf of Mexico LME, Humboldt Current LME, Canary Current LME

UNDP, UNEP, World Bank, EU 17 basin countries $70 million Investment Fund

(WB) already approved by GEF Council in 3 tranches, ~12 investments

2 UNDP-UNEP regional projects (Danube, Black Sea): Technical assistance, policy/legal reform & institutional strengthening

Comparative advantages each IA Black Sea ecosystem recovering:

$3.3 billion in nutrient reduction investments

N, P loads reduced by 6, 33% resp. relative to 2000 baseline

70s & 80s NW shelf benthic hypoxia virtually eliminated

Benthic species diversity doubled from 1980s levels; Phyllophora returning

The Danube - Black Sea The Danube - Black Sea

Basin Basin

Strategic Partnership forStrategic Partnership for

Nutrient Pollution Nutrient Pollution

ReductionReduction

SAP Example

GEF Benguela Current LME Programme

Countries: Angola, Namibia and South Africa

Duration: 2002 - 2007 Implementing agency:

UNDP Executing agency: UNOPS GEF: US$ 15,000,000.00 Co-finance: US$

18,000,000.00

BCLME SAP: Sustainable Management & Utilization of

LMR Regional institutional structure established Joint surveys and assessments of shared

stocks Harmonizing management of shared stocks Assessment of non-exploited species Development of regional mariculture policy Socioeconomic analysis Harmonization of national protected area

policies Regional commitment to FAO Code of

Conduct for Responsible Fishing

BCLME SAP: Management of Mining &

Drilling Regional consultation framework

including Code of Conduct for Responsible Mining

Harmonization of mining policies Cumulative impact assessment

w/industry involvement Coordination of offshore oil and gas

exploration and production actions

BCLME SAP: Assessment of Environmental Variability,

Ecosystem Impacts & Improvement of Predictability

Development of early warning system for monitoring major environmental events

Establishment of environmental baseline against which to measure future variability/change

Improve predictability of extreme events to strengthen resource management

Establish Harmful Algal Bloom reporting network Collaborate with the international community to

assess the CO2 source/sink status of the BCLME

BCLME SAP: Management of Pollution

Harmonizing environmental quality objectives (incl. pollution control, monitoring, enforcement)

Harmonization of oil pollution contingency plans and regional policy

Common regional strategy for implementation of MARPOL 73/78 in BCLME region

Regional harmonization of marine litter legislation and enforcement

BCLME SAP: Maintenance of Ecosystem Health and Protection

of BiodiversityRegional assessment of most

vulnerable species and habitatsRegional policy on ballast water

managementDevelopment of regional marine

biodiversity conservation management plan

BENGUELA CURRENT COMMISSION (BCC)

Ministerial ConferenceMinisterial ConferenceMinisterial ConferenceMinisterial Conference

Joint Management CommitteesJoint Management CommitteesJoint Management CommitteesJoint Management Committees

SecretariatSecretariatSecretariatSecretariat

Living Marine Living Marine

ResourcesResources

Living Marine Living Marine

ResourcesResources

Joint Management BoardJoint Management BoardJoint Management BoardJoint Management Board

Environmental Environmental VariabilityVariability

Environmental Environmental VariabilityVariability

Ecosystem Health andEcosystem Health and

PollutionPollution

Ecosystem Health andEcosystem Health and

PollutionPollution

WORKING GROUPS

GEF in Arctic LMEs - Options

E/W Bering Sea LMEs (GEF-4: UNDP) Chukchi Sea Barents Sea Oyashio Current Sea of Okhotsk E. Siberian Sea Laptev Sea Kara Sea

(All involve Russian Federation as GEF-eligible country)

Thank you!