cbd-ts-67-en

section 1:
Impacts of marine debris on biodiversity
1.1 INTRODUCTION
Section 1: Impacts of marine debris on biodiversity
The global impacts of marine debris on biodiversity and the urgency of action to prevent and mitigate these
adverse impacts were recognized during the meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and
Technological Advice to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in May 2012. This discussion built on
the decision concerning Marine and Coastal Biodiversity during the 10 th Conference of the Parties to the CBD 2 .
It also contributed to the recent Rio +20 Conference, in which concern for the health of the oceans and marine
biodiversity was reaffirmed, committing nations to take action by 2025 to achieve significant reductions in
marine debris to prevent harm to the coastal and marine environment 3 .
Man-made items of debris are now found in marine habitats throughout the world, from the poles to the
equator, from shorelines and estuaries to remote areas of the high seas beyond national jurisdictions, and from
the surface to the ocean floor (Thompson et al., 2009). This debris is harmful to organisms and to human health
(Coe & Rogers 1997; Derraik 2002; Gregory 2009), can assist increased transport of organic and inorganic
contaminants (Holmes et al., 2012; Mato et al., 2001; Teuten et al., 2009), presents a hazard to shipping, and
is aesthetically detrimental (Mouat et al., 2010). Marine debris, and in particular the accumulation of plastic
debris, has been identified as a global problem alongside other key issues of our time including climate change,
ocean acidification and loss of biodiversity 4 (Sutherland et al., 2010).
At present, the major perceived threats to marine biodiversity include the effects of climate change, ocean
acidification, invasive species 5 , overfishing and other extractive activities, pollution and marine debris, habitat
degradation, fragmentation and loss, human population expansion, tourism, and the impact of a wide range of
human activities in the coastal zone (Gray, 1997; Harley et al., 2006; Occhipinti-Ambrogi, 2007; Molnar et al.,
2008). The presence of marine debris in this list highlights its importance as a factor considered to contribute
toward biodiversity loss. It therefore underscores the importance of this report in order to provide greater
understanding of the impacts of such debris and to inform potential measures to facilitate mitigation and
management.
This report reviews the current state of knowledge about the effect of marine debris on ecosystems and biodiversity,
in Section 1. A variety of effects are assessed along with the types and potential origins of debris. Existing
international and national efforts to address this challenge are summarised. Section 2 of this report explores
potential solutions to tackle this problem, and considers successful examples of waste reduction practices with
direct benefits to addressing the challenge of marine debris.
2 Decision X/29 on Marine and Coastal Biodiversity.
3 A/66/L.56, paragraph 163.
4 Biodiversity (biological diversity) ‘means the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia,
terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity
within species, between species and of ecosystems’ (Article 2, Convention on Biological Diversity, 1992). It encompasses
the variability among life forms on Earth, at all levels of organization including genes, species and ecosystems (article 2,
Convention on Biological Diversity 1992), and it is widely accepted that biodiversity is under stress at each of these levels
(Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005).
5 An alien species whose introduction does or is likely to cause economic or environmental harm or harm to human health,
(National Invasive Species Council, Executive Order 13112)
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