Annex 3 - APEC Working Group on Marine Resource Conservation Ministerial Statement

The APEC Ministers:

Accepting the charge of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development to find new approaches to marine and coastal area management and development at the regional level,

Convinced of the importance of marine resource conservation in achieving the Seoul Declaration objective to sustain the growth and development of the region for the common good of its peoples,

Having endorsed the concept of an integrated, multilateral approach to marine environmental protection and an improved understanding of the marine environment,

Nothing the recommendations of the APEC Working Group on Marine Resource Conservation to promote and cooperate in activities addressing coastal zone management including land based sources of pollution and problems of red tides and toxic algae,

Taking into account similar activities of other regional organizations as well as organizations active in the region, such as the North Pacific Marine Sciences Organization (PICES), South Pacific Regional Environmental Program (SPREP), the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission's (IOC) WESTPAC, UNEP Regional Seas Program and the South Pacific Applied Geosciences Commission (SOPAC) and other organizations,

Resolve to fully support APEC cooperation with these organizations with a view to seeking improved understanding, utilization and protection of the marine environment and its resources.