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Letter to Hon. Monica Medina, Assistant Secretary for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs

Letter

Date: Feb. 2, 2022
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Environment

Dear Assistant Secretary Medina:

As the lead sponsors of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act (P.L. 116-224), we write you regarding the Fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2) in Nairobi where the body aims to find agreement on the establishment of an Intergovernmental Negotiation Committee. The Committee would manage and oversee the development and launch negotiations on a global agreement to combat ocean plastic pollution under the United Nations Environment Programme. As you undertake this welcome task, we urge and expect you to consult with Congress ahead of the formal decision to initiate the negotiations process and provide regular consultations during the period in which a new international agreement to address ocean plastic pollution is being developed and negotiated.

In accordance with the objectives outlined in the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, we expect the State Department to work towards achieving an agreement that:

considers the impact of land-based sources of plastic waste on marine and aquatic environments;

advances efforts to eliminate land-based sources of plastic waste that impact marine and aquatic environment;

establishes measurable targets for reducing ocean plastic pollution;

ensures that the UNEA commits to significantly increasing efforts to promote investment in plastic waste elimination and mitigation projects; and

encourages partnerships, consultation, and coordination with civil society, international organizations and financial institutions, subnational coastal communities, fishing industry leaders, and the private sector in developing and executing strategies and policies for addressing plastic pollution.

We appreciate receiving the recent report to Congress, in accordance with the Save our Seas 2.0 Act, which outlined the initial terms of the UNEA negotiations. We wish you the best as you head to Nairobi and look forward to robust consultations with Congress as you move forward.

Sincerely,[...]


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