Representatives of international media organizations attended a briefing on the State of the Environment and Development in the Mediterranean (SoED) report, which has been produced by UNEP/MAP Regional Activity Centre Plan Bleu.
Gaetano Leone, the Coordinator of UNEP/MAP-Barcelona Convention Secretariat, told journalists that the report is a wake-up call for Mediterranean leaders and actors in all sectors. “The time for resolute action to save the Mediterranean is now and tapping into knowledge of the interactions between environment and development will be crucial,” he said during the online media briefing organized by UNEP and the European Commission on the sidelines of EU Green Week.
“By shedding light on the mistakes of the past, the report’s findings can guide a green renaissance in the Mediterranean. Embarking on greener development paths now can halt the environmental degradation trends and salvage hard-won achievements in the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals,” Mr. Leone is quoted as saying in the press release announcing the publication of the report.
According to SoED, rising inequality, biodiversity loss, the growing impact of climate change and unrelenting pressure on natural resources could lead to irreversible environmental damage in the Mediterranean basin. Unless urgent and resolute action is taken to halt current trends, environmental degradation could have serious and lasting consequences for human health and livelihoods in the region.
François Guerquin, Plan Bleu Director, who also spoke at the briefing alongside Mr. Leone, presented the report’s finding and urged a resolute action to act on them. “Unsustainable consumption and production have brought Mediterranean ecosystems to near exhaustion, while socio-economic inequalities are becoming unbearable in some places. We have to collectively re-invent our Mediterranean,” Mr. Guerquin said.
According to the report, 15 per cent of deaths in the Mediterranean are attributable to preventable environmental factors; in 2016, more than 228,000 people died prematurely from exposure to air pollution. The region – one of the world’s most coveted tourism destinations (360 million arrivals in 2017) and one of its busiest shipping routes – is polluted by an estimated 730 tonnes of plastic waste every day. The presence of more than 1,000 non-indigenous species also poses threats to biodiversity, and the region is warming 20 per cent faster than the global average.
The report indicates that the region, which is home to more than 512 million people, is not on track to achieve the SDGs by 2030.
