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  Improving International Environmental Governance »

  Since the late 1970s the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) has delivered services that support implementation of international biodiversity-related agreements at global, regional and national levels. These services not only support the work of the agreement secretariats, but also of the advisory and governance bodies, and of governments party to the various agreements. The aim of this paper is to illustrate this work through examples of work we have undertaken.

  The support that UNEP-WCMC provides is based on expert understanding of the agreements and how they work, resulting from many years of experience and close relationships with secretariats.

  Resource Type: Reports

• Catchment management and Coral Reef Conservation »

   A practical guide for coastal resource managers to reduce damage from Catchment areas based on best practice case studies

  Resource Type: Tools / Applications

• Marine Turtle Nesting Sites (1999) »

  General Data License (excluding WDPA)

  Datasets Available from UNEP-WCMC: Excluding WDPA
  Access to UNEP-WCMC datasets is provided on the understanding that you read and consent to be bound by the Terms and Conditions attached. For the purposes of this Agreement the “Data” comprise any of the spatial data and associated attribute data downloadable from the UNEP-WCMC website, excluding the World Database on Protected Areas.

  Read the data policy here

  The Global Marine Turtle Nesting database provides the distribution of
  marine turtles. Information was obtained from published and unpublished
  literature, and through liaison with turtle fieldworkers. It was intended that
  the database would be of use to a wide audience, including biologists,
  coastal planners and those concerned with emergency response to oil spills.

  The marine turtles database of nesting and feeding sites was developed by
  UNEP-WCMC over a number of years and contains source information from
  1949 to 1993. This dataset is no longer being maintained and must be used
  With caution.
   

  Resource Type: Spatial Data / Maps
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  Marine Turtle Feeding Sites (1999) »

  General Data License (excluding WDPA)

  Datasets Available from UNEP-WCMC: Excluding WDPA
  Access to UNEP-WCMC datasets is provided on the understanding that you read and consent to be bound by the Terms and Conditions attached. For the purposes of this Agreement the “Data” comprise any of the spatial data and associated attribute data downloadable from the UNEP-WCMC website, excluding the World Database on Protected Areas.

  Read the data policy here

  The Global Marine Turtle Nesting and Feeding Sites database provides the distribution of marine turtles. Information was obtained from published and unpublished literature, and through liaison with turtle fieldworkers. It was intended that the database would be of use to a wide audience, including biologists, coastal planners and those concerned with emergency response to oil spills.

  The marine turtles database of nesting and feeding sites was developed by UNEP-WCMC over a number of years and contains source information from 1949 to 1993.

  This dataset is no longer being maintained and must be used with caution.
   

  Resource Type: Spatial Data / Maps

• PIANC Dredging and port construction around coral reefs (2010) »

   One third of the world’s population lives in coastal areas and rapid development of these areas has meant increased construction of coastal infrastruc- ture (e.g. ports, navigation channels, coastal de- fence) and related activities (e.g. land reclamation, beach nourishment), which has inevitably led to conflicting priorities between coral reef conservation and economic growth. The key impacts of these ac- tivities, if not managed, include:
  • Direct loss of coral reef caused by the removal or burial of reefs
  • Lethal or sub-lethal stress to corals caused by elevated turbidity and sedimentation rates
  Dredging and port construction activities potentially affect not only the site itself, but also surrounding ar- eas, through a large number of impact vectors (e.g. turbid plumes, sedimentation, release of contami- nants, bathymetric changes). Effects may be imme- diate or develop over a longer timeframe and may be temporary or permanent in nature, depending on a large number of factors.

  Resource Type: Tools / Applications
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  In Dead Water - Merging of Climate Change with Pollution, Over-harvest, and Infestations in the World's Fishing Grounds (2008) »

  The World's oceans play a crucial role for life on the planet. Healthy seas and the services they provide are key to the future development of mankind. Our seas are highly dynamic, structured and complex systems. The seafloor consists of vast shelves and plains with huge mountains, canyons and trenches which dwarf similar structures on land. Ocean currents transport water masses many times larger than all rivers on Earth combined.

  In this report, the locations of the most productive fishing grounds in the World - from shallow, coastal waters to the deep and high seas - are compared to projected scenarios of climate change, ocean acidification, coral bleaching, intensity of fisheries, land-based pollution, increase of invasive species infestations and growth in coastal development.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  The HERMES Story »

  Hotspot Ecosystem Research on the Margins of European Seas (HERMES) was one of the 40 most successful projects under the EU's 6th Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development. Following completion of the project in March 2009, The HERMES Story is published jointly by HERMES and UNEP to inform policy and decision makers from around the world about the lessons learned and the amazing new insights into deep-sea biodiversity, structure, function and dynamics discovered under HERMES. The HERMES Story highlights the need for concerted action to protect the deep sea against the increasing pressures, threats and impacts from human activities and climate change, and provides inspiration for the development of similar deep-sea research projects in other regions.

  Resource Type: Reports
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  Toward representative protection of the world's coasts and oceans - progress, gaps, and opportunities »

  Marine conservation lags behind terrestrial in the establishment of protected areas. This was recognized by the Convention on Biological Diversity, whose members, in 2004, agreed to establish “comprehensive, effectively managed, and ecologically representative” systems of marine protected areas (MPAs) by 2012. Halfway toward this target date, we look at the coverage of the world’s 5045 MPAs from a biogeographic perspective.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Biodiversity Targets after 2010 »

  In order to build on the momentum created by the 2010 target of the Convention on Biological Diversity, we propose a shift away from a large set of static targets towards a smaller number of specific targets. Specifically, we present three categories of targets (red, green and blue) with examples of each. These relate respectively to (1) those biodiversity outcomes that must be avoided to avert situations that are deleterious for people, (2) the highly valued biodiversity conservation priorities, and (3) an improved scientific understanding necessary for adaptive management now and into the future.

  Resource Type: Journal Papers
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  Our Precious Coasts - Marine Pollution, Climate Change and the Resilience of Coastal Ecosystems »

  The ability of coral reefs to survive in a globally-warming world may crucially depend on the levels of pollution to which they are exposed, new findings indicate.

  Scientists studying reefs that were bleached in the late 1990s by high surface sea temperatures have found a link between recovery rates and the levels of contamination entering coastal waters from developments on the land.

  Resource Type: Reports