The day is grey and sullen. The sea looks greasy. Stern Slovenian
security guards are patrolling the entrances to the grand hall of the Hotel
where IWC 66 will shortly begin.
It appears that a Japanese minister is in town as there is
much greeting of dignitaries going on in the foyer ahead of the opening.
Eventually we all troop in to find our seats. Then we all
troop out again because we have forgotten our head-sets for translation.
The Commission is called to order by its Chair, Bruno Mainini
of Switzerland and Slovenia’s Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning,
Mrs Irena Majcen, starts her speech – in Slovenian. She tells us about the new
Slovenia stamps celebrating cetaceans but translation is lost and eventually a
translator is called to the high table to translate live. The minister welcomes
the return of the IWC. Nothing is far away anymore – not even the distant
oceans and the whales and that it is our job to improve their environment. She
makes mention of marine debris and that Slovenia is turning lost and discarded
nets into useful materials; she also mentions marine protected areas and the
proposed South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary which she believes would be a good
step. Whales are also a natural resource and sustainable management is
essential. The IWC does this with expertise. She concludes by thanking the
local principality and the local NGO, Morigenos, the local hotel group and
invites all to a reception this evening. And she wishes us a pleasant stay and
hopes we visit the salt pans.
State Secretary Mrs Daja Bavdaz extends the greetings of the
deputy prime minister and notes that the Scientific Committee also met here
earlier this year. She mentions Slovenia’s high endemic biodiversity, climate
change and biosecurity, and commitment to sustainability.
She also mentions the importance of bees in food security [many
NGOs consider developing plans to see if bee conservation can be added to the
IWC workplan] and many other issues. Chair Bruno thanks her and invites the
deputy mayor of Piran, Mrs Meira Hot, to speak. She is very proud that we have
returned to Piran and notes that the local community works to maintain balance
in the sea. She notes that whales only visit occasionally. She, too, mentions
Morigenos – the local marine NGO – and bids us a warm welcome.
The microphone is passed to Simon Brockington, Executive
Secretary of the IWC. He thanks the Minister and the State Secretary for their
warm welcome and notes that many here now consider Slovenia as a second home.
He likes the landscape and the cuisine and also gives thanks for the local
assistance his team has received. He notes that not all discussions are easy
and that present are sixty six member countries and one observer country and
many NGOs and others are present. He notes that there is much that we agree on
– the IWC has been organising workshops at the rate of one each month over the
last two years. He also notes the Scientific Committee meetings and that the
expertise coming from these and the workshops spans all the needs of the IWC…
most exciting of all, he adds, this is constantly evolving and it works a good
basis for our decision-making this week. There is one schedule amendment, six
resolutions and much else to discuss. He wishes the chair well. Warm applause
follows all speakers.
Simon gives the report of the credentials committee – Japan,
New Zealand and the Secretariat met yesterday and all credentials that had been
presented were in order ….but many had not presented their credentials, so the
committee will reconvene and Simon encourages credentials to be given to his
‘good friend’ Julie Creek in the Secretariat. Simon then identifies those who
are in arrears and do not have voting rights (he notes at least two are in the process
of paying up). Those in arrears include Bulgaria, Oman, Palau, Panama, Ecuador,
Guinea Bissau, Solomon Islands, Belize, Congo and Romania.
The Chairman notes that people need to be prepared in case
we get ahead on the agenda and that IGOs and NGO may be called on to speak
under the new rules. He would like to have all things done by consensus and
that drafting groups will be formed by members of the Commission and it is
their decision whether not they allow observers in. It is the work that counts
he adds and we may have to go over time.
Simon introduces the microphones – one press
puts you in the queue – it goes green – when it is goes red you are live. Simon
mimes the pressing of the button. A second press removes you from the queue. The
Chair can see requests to speak on his screen.
Russia: I wanted to ask a question. I pushed the button but
you did not give the floor to me. For a point of order do I press the button or
raise the flag.
Chair Bruno says you can shout or stand up. The thing is to
get my attention!
All documents are online. Any questions on documents? None.
Everyone happy with the agenda?
Antigua and Barbuda raises its flag and is then
encouraged to press his button. They find the agenda acceptable. He says
something quietly and which is hard to hear but the drift of it seems to be
that some important issues are not prominently enough on the agenda. Can the
use of whale resources be better incorporated into our work? He seems to be
asking the IWC Bureau to consider such matters.
Chair – this is the meeting of the Commission, so all views
should be represented here. The Bureau was established a couple of years ago
and I have worked there for the last couple of years. We all need to decide
what the Bureau can and should do. We will note your comments and include in
the record of the meeting and we shall need some further discussions in this
meeting. There will be a change in Bureau membership.
A+B: would it be appropriate then to have an understanding
or agreement to review our agenda to come up with a more balanced approach?
Chair: a group might be formed. For this meeting we have our
agenda – as published according to the rules [first circulated 100 days ago and
then a revised version issued 60 days ago]. You might outreach to colleagues to
see if there is interest.
A+B: in this case we join the consensus.
Chair: I note there is a possibility of bringing forward a
resolution under exceptional circumstances – so we have a seventh resolution.
USA can you introduce?
USA (Russell Smith: Commissioner): Thanks Slovenia for the
lovely venue. He has tabled a resolution on the vaquita – further to
deliberations at the IUCN and the IWC Scientific Committee – the vaquita is in
precipitous decline and calls on those Parties to take appropriate steps.
The agenda – with the addition of the vaquita resolution -
is approved.
We move to the Scientific Committee report. It is presented by
Caterina Fortuna and was prepared by her and her vice chair and the Head of
Science. Four documents relate – two annual Scientific Committee reports, an
over view and a workplan. She notes observers
across 17 other IGOs and then works carefully through a number of slides that
outline the Scientific Committee’s work over two years. Among other things she
reports that southern hemisphere humpback whales have returned to 70% of their
original stock size. Various ‘in-depth’ assessments are in progress.
She says that a big part of her work is environmental
concerns – she mentions SOCER (The State of the Cetacean Environment Repot);
chemical pollution, oil spills, climate change, Arctic issues, marine debris
and more. She stressed that much of this was reported to the Conservation
Committee last week. She stressed that the SC has concluded that there is
emerging evidence that compromised acoustic habitat can affect some populations
adversely.
Concerning small cetaceans, she noted work on bottlenose
dolphin taxonomy and the voluntary fund for small cetacean conservation
research. She notes the SC’s advice has fed into the USA vaquita resolution.
She also mentions Whale Watching and special permits
(including the famous annex P)… and reviews of Special Permits [aka Scientific Whaling]
(and suddenly it gets much hotter in the room); she notes changes were made to procedures
to help give attention to this topic
Conservation Management Plans and National Progress Reports pass
by and she further notes that a summary of abundance estimates is in progress. In
conclusion, she states that it is difficult to summarise 600 pages of SC
reports. Questions are welcome - she loves surprises, unlike her male
colleagues. She believes that the work that is done by the SC is worth millions
of pounds and she thanks the Secretariat for their support.
Switzerland calls for the SC recommendations to be taken
seriously and thanks the Committee for its hard work. Mexico also congratulates
the committee on its work and suggests it is worth millions of pounds – or
euros really (he adds with a wry smile)
– and welcomes the new work plan.
Guinea asks for the conclusions of this body to guide the
Commission.
Monaco also celebrates the Scientific Committee and as a
professional scientist he notes that Catarina has only shown the tip of the
Iceberg of what has been done. It is remarkable how they come up with reports
so swiftly. He notes it aids the credibility and visibility of the Commission.
A+B speaks again very quietly but he would like the SC to
provide more information on the maximum sustainable yields of stocks.
Chairman – we are now a little bit behind and I give the
floor to the last on the list: Denmark:
Denmark: I join others that have thanked Slovenia.
Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling is of interest to her and she praises the
application of the SLAs (strike limit algorithms). And we go to lunch with
Australia to celebrate SORP (their South Atlantic Research Programme)
 |
| whale art in the foyer |
No comments:
Post a Comment