Many environmental issues cross national boundaries. As environmental issues have risen in importance, international laws about environmental protection and management have been developed. Examples of these international laws include Multilateral Environmental Agreements or MEAs.
You can find a list of MEAs that Vanuatu is a party to in Annex 3 of the Vanuatu National Environment Policy and Implementation Plan 2016 - 2030 below:
Some of the MEAs implemented by the Department of Environmental Protection and Conservation include the:
- Convention on Biological Diversity www.cbd.int/
- Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilisation to the Convention on Biological Diversity www.cbd.int/abs
- Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) www.cites.org
- United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa www.unccd.int
- Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants www.pops.int
- Waigani Convention www.sprep.org/legal/waigani-convention
- Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer ozone.unep.org
- Agreement Establishing the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) sprep.org
Other MEAs
As the definition of environment is broad - it includes the land and water; the layers of the atmosphere; organic and inorganic matter and living organisms; weather and climatic systems; and the interacting natural, cultural and human systems including these components - the focal point for MEAs is not always DEPC.
Here are some examples of other international agreements:
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change newsroom.unfccc.int
- Memorandum of Understanding for the Conservation of Cetaceans and their Habitats in the Pacific Islands Region, Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Sharks and the Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation and Management of Dugongs and their Habitats Throughout Their Range. These Memorandums of Understanding are linked to the Convention on Migratory Species www.cms.int
- International Plant Protection Convention www.ippc.int/en
- United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea www.un.org/Depts/los/index.htm
- Agreement on the International Dolphin Conservation Program www.iattc.org/IDCPENG.htm
- World Heritage Convention whc.unesco.org
- Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources www.ccamlr.org
- International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships; International Convention on Standards of Training Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers; and International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue. These conventions are all related to the International Maritime Organization www.imo.org/en/About/Conventions/ListOfConventions/Pages/Default.aspx
- Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency Convention www.ffa.int/about