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Foreword
Impacts of Marine Debris on Biodiversity: Current Status and Potential Solutions
Extending over three quarters of the surface of the Earth, oceans are the origin of all life on this planet and play a
critical role in planetary life support systems. Global biogeochemical cycles and weather patterns are dependent
on oceans and affect every person and living organism on this planet. Economically, there is considerable
reliance on the world’s oceans – from fisheries which support over 15% of the global protein supply, to off-shore
petroleum production and the risks this entails, along with the millions of jobs supported by tourism and fishing.
Our oceans are increasingly bearing the brunt of direct and indirect impacts from human activities. A wide range
of threats such as increasing acidification, coral bleaching, toxins and chemical pollution, nutrient overloading,
and fisheries depletion including many others are undermining the ocean’s ability to sustain ecological functions.
Marine debris is a part of this phenomenon—made up of persistent, manufactured solid materials that are
discarded or otherwise abandoned in the marine and coastal environment. Large quantities of debris can now be
found in the most remote places of the ocean, and persist almost indefinitely in the environment. This represents
a significant cause for concern, although much of this growing threat to biodiversity and human health is easily
preventable with solutions readily available.
The global impacts of marine debris on biodiversity and the urgency of action to prevent and mitigate adverse
impacts were recognized by the latest meeting of the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological
Advice to the Convention on Biological Diversity. This lead to the adoption of several recommendations
addressing the impacts of marine debris on marine and coastal biodiversity (CBD SBSTTA 16 Recommendation
XVI/5), in line with the current efforts of Parties in achieving Aichi Biodiversity Targets on marine and coastal
biodiversity, in particular Targets 6, 8 and 11.
This publication is a result of fruitful collaboration between the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological
Diversity and the Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel of the Global Environment Facility. We believe it
is a timely response to the main Outcome Document of the 2012 United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development, that reaffirmed its concern for the health of the oceans and marine biodiversity – and committed
nations to take action by 2025 to achieve significant reductions in marine debris to prevent harm to the coastal
and marine environment (A/66/L.56, paragraph 163). With the endorsement by the UN General Assembly of
the Rio+20 Outcome Document, prevention and mitigation of marine debris is now recognized among global
priorities for sustainable development and the post-2015 UN development agenda. We thus hope this report will
support Parties, other Governments, along with civil society and the scientific community in further enhancing
their awareness of the urgency of this issue and facilitating immediate actions to address the sources and causes
of marine debris in the ocean.
Braulio Ferreira de Souza Dias
Executive Secretary
Convention on Biological Diversity
Thomas E. Lovejoy
Chair, Scientific and Technical Advisory Panel
Biodiversity Chair
The Heinz Center
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