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Building Pacific capacities to promote and facilitate marine scientific research

Tuesday, 15 December 2015 15:24
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14 December 2015, Busan - Marine science and marine scientific research play a critical role in the sustainable development of the oceans, seas and their resources.

This is consistently recognised by the United Nations General Assembly in its annual resolutions on oceans and the law of the sea, the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development and by the Small Island Developing States Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway adopted in 2014.

Marine scientific research is also at the core of the ‘2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’ and the Sustainable Development Goal 14a officially adopted by the General Assembly in September 2015.

To address this, the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea of the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs (DOALOS) and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (IOC-UNESCO), in partnership with the Pacific Community (SPC) European Union supported Deep Sea Minerals Project and the Korea Maritime Institute (KMI), recently organised a first of its kind training workshop for Pacific Small Island Developing States government officials and scientists in Busan, Republic of Korea.

Participants from 13 Pacific Island states attended the training course which covered the legal, technical and scientific aspects related to the conduct of marine scientific research under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in particular with regards to the rights and obligations of coastal and researching states. Participants included government officials and scientists from both coastal and researching states.

“This training course is very significant as it enhances my skills and capacity to help my country embark on developing its marine scientific research policy and other relevant policies in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. I’ve identified gaps in our legislations dealing with marine scientific research, hence this training is supportive for improving and strengthening of such areas for the benefit of Vanuatu citizens,” Vanuatu’s Maritime and Ocean Affairs Division Desk Officer, Mr Roel Tari, said after the training.

Pacific leaders have identified the need to strengthen national capacities in marine scientific research, recognising the benefits that could be derived from investing more in this field as a means to increase scientific knowledge of the marine environment and support national and regional economic growth in marine sectors, such as shipping and offshore energy, as well as in security and defence.

It also creates enabling conditions for pioneering new and more sustainable routes for exploitation and technological development such as bioprospecting or deep seabed mining.

Increasing scientific knowledge and developing research capacity are also critical for ensuring the protection and preservation of the marine environment.

The week-long workshop included representatives from Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Nauru, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

The training teams included regional and international experts in their respective fields drawn from DOALOS, IOC-UNESCO, SPC, the University of the South Pacific and research institutes.

The workshop concluded on 11 December.


Media Contact: Marie Bourrel, SPC-EU Deep Sea Minerals Project Legal Adviser, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , +679 324 9292Appeler : +679 324 9292
Mohammed Nazeem Kasim, EU Press Officer, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Last Updated on Saturday, 26 December 2015 17:25  

Newsflash

Thursday 19 September 2013, Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), Suva, Fiji – On 19 September, guest lecturer Dr. Tom Durrant of the Australian Bureau of Meteorology presented his wave modelling research to students at USP Marine Science Campus. This new research provides a better understanding of ocean wave movements across the Pacific and will be used by SPC’s Applied Geoscience and Technology (SOPAC) Division to enhance development planning and disaster management in the region.

According to Durrant, “Waves and wave climate have significant implications for coastal security, marine resources, and alternative energy options. Waves on the ocean, Durrant explained, range in period from tidal waves, with periods of 12 and 24 hours, to Tsunamis, with periods around 15 minutes, to wind driven waves with periods of around 2 to 20 seconds.

In the case of wind driven waves, the focus of Durrant's work,  the longer the wind blows over a greater area, the bigger the waves. Pacific Islands are affected not only by local, short period, wind-generated waves but also by long period swells generated by far away storms.

Long period swell waves are fast-moving waves caused by distant storms that can pile up when they reach land. Such waves have caused widespread flooding, damage and loss of life in the Pacific, for example, in the Mortlock Islands of Papua New Guinea in 2009 and in the Marshall Islands in 2012. “These events haven’t been studied much because of lack of data,” said Durrant.

To this end, Durrant has been working under the AusAid-funded Pacific and Australia Climate Change Science and Adaptation Planning (PACCSAP) Programme to develop wave models for the Pacific that can in turn be used to assess wave-induced coastal inundation events in detail.