Australian Quarantine Review Secretariat Australian Quarantine a shared responsibility
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- 6 The Convention oN Biological Diversity
- 7 The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
- 8 The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
- 9 THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEA
- 10 Sources of Further Information
5 The World Health OrganizationWHO was established in 1946 and at the end of August 1996 had 190 member countries. The objective of the WHO is to attain the highest possible level of health for the world's population. WHO, inter alia, acts as the directing and coordinating authority on international health work; assists governments, upon request, in strengthening national health services; furnishes appropriate technical assistance and, in emergencies, necessary aid; advances work to eradicate epidemic, endemic and other diseases; promotes, in cooperation with other specialised agencies, the improvement of nutrition, housing, sanitation, recreation, economic and working conditions and other aspects of environmental hygiene; proposes conventions, agreements and regulations and makes recommendations with respect to international health matters; establishes and revises, as necessary, international nomenclatures of diseases, of causes of death and of public health practices; standardises diagnostic procedures; and develops, establishes and promotes international standards with respect to food, biological, pharmaceutical and similar products. 6 The Convention oN Biological DiversityThe Convention on Biological Diversity was negotiated in the lead-up to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in June 1992. The Convention's aims are the conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources. It entered into force on 29 December 1993 and has been ratified by more than 130 countries. Australia ratified the Convention in June 1993. Two provisions in Article 8 of the Convention are particularly relevant to quarantine issues: · '(g) establish or maintain means to regulate, manage or control the risks associated with the use and release of living modified organisms resulting from biotechnology which are likely to have adverse environmental impacts that could affect the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity; and · (h) prevent the introduction of, control or eradicate those alien species which threaten ecosystems, habitats and species'. A major outcome of the first Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, in December 1994, was a decision to initiate a process to 'consider the need for and modalities of a protocol on the safe transfer, handling and use of living modified organisms resulting from biotechnology that may have adverse effects on biodiversity' — a biosafety protocol. Following meetings of experts groups in Cairo (May 1995) and Madrid (July 1995), the second Conference of the Parties in November 1995 agreed to establish an open-ended ad hoc group to commence negotiations to develop a protocol on biosafety focusing, in particular, on transboundary movement of any living modified organism resulting from modern biotechnology that may have an adverse effect on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. The negotiating group is seeking to complete its work by 1998. The outcome of the protocol negotiations could have implications for Australia's animal and plant quarantine arrangements in terms of Australia's international obligations in relation to the safe transfer, handling and use of living modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology (i.e. genetically modified organisms) that could have adverse environmental effects. 7 The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and FloraThe trade in international wildlife has contributed to the decline in the numbers of many species of animals and plants. The scale of over-exploitation for trade led to an international treaty being drawn up to protect wildlife against such over-exploitation and to prevent international trade from threatening species with extinction. The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) came into force on 1 July 1975 and now has more than 130 member countries. These countries participate in meeting the requirements of CITES by placing controls on trade in an agreed list of endangered species and by regulating and monitoring trade in others that might become endangered. In Australia, CITES controls are administered under the Wildlife Protection (Regulation of Exports and Imports) Act 1982 by the Australian Nature Conservation Agency. 8 The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from ShipsThe International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships is the most comprehensive international initiative to regulate and minimise pollution from ships. The Convention deals with all forms of ship-generated marine pollutants, and more than 90% of the world's shipping tonnage is regulated under it. The massive transfer of ballast water and the potential for introductions of organisms could impact adversely on local and regional economies, human health and marine biodiversity. A new Annex on ballast water is being developed under this Convention to set international rules for all shipping. 9 THE UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION ON THE LAW OF THE SEAMember States to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea have the general obligation to protect and preserve the marine environment (Article 192). Measures shall include those necessary to 'protect and preserve rare or fragile ecosystems as well as the habitat of depleted, threatened or endangered species and other forms of marine life' (Article 194). 10 Sources of Further InformationFull texts of the above agreements can be obtained from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or from the Department of the Environment, Sport and Territories. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade also maintains a current list of the 103 treaties relating to conservation, the environment and heritage to which Australia is a signatory. A number of these agreements have relevance to Australia in the discharge of its quarantine duties. This extensive list has not been reproduced here, but may be obtained from the Treaties Secretariat of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. APPENDIX D: International standards In QUARANTINE RISK ANALYSIS This appendix provides details of current international developments in quarantine risk analysis. Note that the terms used in this appendix (e.g. pest, pest risk analysis) reflect the usage adopted by the organisations discussed. Directory: SiteCollectionDocuments SiteCollectionDocuments -> Emerging Transport Technologies SiteCollectionDocuments -> Lesson Plan What are smart goals? SiteCollectionDocuments -> Melbourne Library Service Policy Public Access Internet and Computer Use Policy SiteCollectionDocuments -> Navy Drug Screening Laboratory Jacksonville SiteCollectionDocuments -> Building Management Systems (bms) Seminar 2 Advanced Management and Improvement Opportunities SiteCollectionDocuments -> Commitments and Pledges for Training and Capacity Building 2014-15 SiteCollectionDocuments -> Galileo® and Apollo® Systems – Airline Participants SiteCollectionDocuments -> Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy 25 years of protecting Australia SiteCollectionDocuments -> Final pest risk analysis report for Drosophila suzukii April 2013 SiteCollectionDocuments -> Permitted Seeds List – 16 June 2016 Download 1.49 Mb. Share with your friends:
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