Brussels, 09/10/2012 (Agence Europe) - As the conference of the parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 11) is being held in Hyderabad (8-19 October), Janez Potocnik, European Environment Commissioner, plunged into a vibrant oral defence of the preservation of marine resources when speaking before the fisheries committee of the European Parliament, on 9 October in Brussels. He said it was not an option but the only way possible and an undeniable necessity for ensuring sustainable development not only in the European Union but also worldwide. He is counting on the assistance of the parliamentary delegation present in Hyderabad to ensure the success of the conference which is focusing largely on marine and coastal biodiversity.
In order to overcome the fact that “we are locked into an inefficient, unsustainable growth model”, it is necessary to go from the exhaustion of resources to resource efficiency, the commissioner said, adding that “this is precisely why the European Commission has been pushing so much for a growth model that places the efficient use of natural resources at the centre of its economic transformation”. This in practice means two things. Firstly, it is necessary to integrate resource efficiency and environmental concerns into all policies. Aiming in this direction are reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) and a proposal for the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund. Secondly, it is necessary to exploit the full potential of the EU environmental policy. Good use must therefore be made of the EU maritime strategy and the framework directive of the same name, and of the EU 2020 biodiversity strategy.
The commissioner warned, however, that “EU action will only bring changes and be credible if there is a strong coherence between what we do internally and what we do externally”. He said the Rio+20 summit was a milestone “but it was a milestone in the sense that the summit conclusions contain a strong commitment to protect and restore the health, productivity and resilience of oceans and marine ecosystems, and to maintain their biodiversity by applying both an ecosystem approach and the precautionary approach”. Potocnik said in this respect that the general guidelines approved were very clear, namely: to restore stocks to levels that can produce maximum sustainable yield on an urgent basis; to develop and implement science-based management plans urgently; to manage by catch, discards and other adverse ecosystem impacts from fisheries; and to protect vulnerable marine ecosystems.
Rio+20 has also reaffirmed the commitment to eliminate subsidies that contribute to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, and overcapacity. “All this is fully in line with the CFP reform proposal”, said Potocnik, who is counting on the support of parliamentarians to ensure that Rio+20 is a success in years to come. “We can still make a real difference”, he said addressing the MEPs, “and I trust I can count on your support”. (AN/transl.jl)