As one of the activities of the NOWPAP Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter, an International Coastal Cleanup (ICC) campaign was held in Dalian, People’s Republic of China on 11 September 2008. This event brought several hundred volunteers from local governmental agencies, industries, universities and non-governmental organizations together with international participants representing Japan, Ocean Conservancy and NOWPAP Regional Coordinating Unit. As a direct result of the activity, over one hundred kilogram of marine litter has been collected on a swimming beach and more from the adjacent seabed where scuba divers were involved. Immediate prior to the ICC, a domestic meeting on marine litter was organized by the Ministry of Environmental Protection to build up awareness on the issue and share experiences among relevant governmental authorities such as Ministry of Agriculture, Maritime Safety Administration and State Oceanic Administration in tackling the problem nationwide. Right after the ICC, an international marine litter prevention and control workshop was also organized for the similar purpose. It is the first time that Ocean Conservancy, the initiator of the ICC campaign worldwide, has sent a senior vice president to China to participate and promote the ICC in China. Similar ICC activities are being organized in Shanghai and other parts of China.
Implementation of NOWPAP contributes to the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities (GPA) in the Northwest Pacific region.