The 2019 APEC was organized by Chile and the first meeting of the senior officials was held from February 23 to March 8. Meanwhile, different working group meetings were convened to discuss the year’s various topics. The representative of OCA participated in the marine waste topical discussion in the “Ocean and Fisheries Working Group,” as well as exchanged with related economic bodies in in-depth discussions on how to solve the marine waste problem. The discussion achieved abundant results and provided significant meaning to Taiwan’s marine waste-related governance.  

In the projects supported by APEC, monitoring and management of marine waste using technology is a very important trend. Numerous economic body members expressed interest in participating in satellite telemetry, tracking, and monitoring projects. Regarding this topic, the United States also expressed care, and stated that it already had related technology and could provide necessary support. This conforms to the OCA’s current plan and strategy to use telemetry technology to track marine pollution and UAVs to monitor marine waste. In the future, the OCA will continue to share and exchange related experiences on the international stage.  

To increase the visibility of marine waste issues and related policies, the hosting country, Chile, proposed listing marine waste issues in the “Policy Partnership on Food Security (PPFS) Working Group” joint meeting for discussion. The goal is to combine marine waste reduction with food security issues, so the issues can be included and discussed in the food ministerial-level declaration after the APEC food security week in August 2019. The attending Ocean and Fisheries Working Group members recognized the close relationship between marine waste and food security, such as the impact of waste fishing nets on fishery resources and ocean microplastics on health. They expressed their support and are expectant of future results.  


At the meeting
Group photo of the Taiwan representative with the Ocean and Fisheries Working Group’s chairperson (third on the left) and the APEC Secretariat director (third on the right).
“The 19th APEC Roundtable Meeting on the Involvement of Business/Private Sector in Sustainability of the Marine Environment”
Date: October 9, 2019 Issued by: Department of Planning


“The 19th APEC Roundtable Meeting on the Involvement of Business/Private Sector in Sustainability of the Marine Environment” held in Taipei from October 3 to October 4, 2018
Nine economic bodies participated in this conference to discuss climate change, marine ecosystem, and reduction of marine pollution. The conference conclusions and recommendations include the following: (1) improve the capability building of stakeholders to promote social and economic development, and protect the marine environment; (2) implement appropriate management plans in marine protected areas to effectively implement related plans and proposals; (3) improve the communication among stakeholders during an oil spill event; (4) improve cooperation among APEC economic bodies, use innovative technology to monitor and track marine pollution sources, and improve accountability; (5) set the recycling standard for APEC regions and eliminate plastic trash that is disposed of in the ocean; and (6) work together on current platforms and recommendations to solve marine pollution. These conclusions and recommendations were included in the APEC Bulletin on Marine Resource Conservation and Fisheries and issued to the various economic bodies for reference.


Speech by Director-General Huang of the Ocean Conservation Administration at the conference
Group photo at the conference