Nordic ministerial declaration on the call for a global agreement to combat marine plastic litter and microplastics

10.04.19 | Declaration
The Nordic ministerial declaration on the call for a global agreement to combat marine plastic litter and microplastics was adopted on the 10th of April 2019.

Information

Adopted
10.04.2019
Location
Reykjavik

We, the Nordic Ministers of Environment and Climate:

  1. Note with concern the high and rapidly increasing levels of marine plastic litter and microplastics as a global environmental problem and a serious threat to the marine environment and the various services our coastal and marine ecosystems provide and livelihoods such as fisheries, maritime transport, recreation and tourism.
  2. Stress the importance of the United Nations Environment Assembly resolution 3/7 and its long-term ambition of eliminating discharge of plastic litter and microplastics into the oceans to avoid detriments to marine ecosystems and human activities dependent on them as a guiding objective for our efforts
  3. Welcomes the United Nations Environment Assembly  resolution 4/7 "Marine Litter and Microplastics" , including the extension of the Ad Hoc Open Ended Expert Group to continue the work to analyse relevant response options at all levels 
  4. Recall the Sustainable Development Goal 14 "by 2025, to prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution" and underline the need for a stronger global response for the effective implementation of measures to reach this goal while also preparing for action in the period after 2025
  5. Affirm that prevention and reduction of marine plastic litter and microplastics from both land and sea sources constitute an essential contribution to achieving the sustainable development goals and the long-term ambition of elimination of the discharges to the oceans and seas.
  6. Stress that strengthened action is urgently needed to prevent further discharge and reduce levels of marine plastic litter and microplastic in the marine environment. Underlines that this issue by its global nature cannot be solved by any one country alone and that effective, dedicated global governance is needed to address existing gaps and promote coherence, coordination and effective prioritization of our efforts,
  7. Call for monitoring and assessment of sources of plastic litter and amounts in Nordic seas to inform management action to reduce inputs of plastic,
  8. Call for the development of a global agreement to more effectively and comprehensively deal with the issue of marine plastic litter and microplastics on a global level in an integrated manner.
  9. Agree to provide financial support for a Nordic Report to inform decision-making, sketching out the possible elements and approaches of a new global agreement that would address the whole lifecycle of plastics with the view to stop plastic litter from land-and seabased sources from entering the oceans,
  10. Encourage other interested actors to join the call for a new global agreement and participate actively in the Ad Hoc Open-Ended Expert group established by United Nations Environment Assembly
  11. Commit to use our roles as leaders to work towards an ambitious outcome at the Fifth Session of the United Nations Environment Assembly in 2021