Participants at the PACPOL workshop in Brisbane, Australia Representatives from 13 Pacific island countries and territories have gathered in Brisbane, Australia this week to review and update the Pacific Ocean Pollution Prevention Programme (PACPOL) strategy. This important strategy, implemented in partnership by the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and the International Maritime Organization (IMO), defines activities to protect the public health, safety, environment and natural resources of the Pacific islands from the effects of marine pollution. Mr Kosi Latu, Deputy Director General of SPREP, explained, that for example, ship sourced marine pollution encompasses a number of issues including oil spills, dumping and ballast water management: "With a huge volume of ship traffic passing through the Pacific Ocean, all these issues pose a threat to the people and the environment in our region. Through initiatives like PACPOL, Pacific island countries and territories are better able to protect the marine and coastal environment, the natural and cultural resources of island nations as well as the general safety of the public." Significant inroads have been made in this area of the past few years, with ground-breaking initiatives such as the modernisation and revision of the Pacific Islands Regional Marine Spill Contingency ...
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