4 February 2010 - Co-sponsored by CMS, ASCOBANS, WWF and the Loro Parque Foundation, an update and expansion of the "Review of Small Cetaceans" has been launched online today on the website of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (UNEP/CMS). This encyclopaedia on all 72 species of toothed whales includes the most recent scientific findings on the distribution, migration, behaviour and threats to this group of whales. Maps showing the currently known distribution of each species were provided by IUCN and the Global Mammal Assessment.
A corresponding poster available online shows for the first time all toothed whale species sorted according to their conservation status as defined by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species ™.
Press release -English- -German-
See the Encyclopaedia and the Poster. The poster can be ordered from the Secretariat.

21-23 April 2010: 17th Meeting of the Advisory Committee, Cornwall, United Kingdom

14 January 2010 - The ASCOBANS Secretariat gratefully accepted the kind offer of the United Kingdom government to host the 17th Meeting of the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee (AC) in Cornwall at the 'Eden Project' Conference Centre. More information on the venue, transport and accommodation will be posted shortly.
The AC's role is to provide advice and information to the Secretariat and the Parties between the sessions of the decision-making body of the Agreement, the Meeting of Parties (MOP), thereby facilitating the implementation of the Agreement. Observers are usually welcome to attend these meetings. Those interested are required to inform the Secretariat in writing of their intention to participate no later than 20 February 2010 to allow Parties time to decide on their admission. Please refer to the official invitation letter for details.
For any questions, please contact the ASCOBANS Secretariat.

23-24 February 2010: 6th Meeting of the Jastarnia Group, Hel Marine Station, Poland

14 January 2010 - The ASCOBANS Jastarnia Working Group was established to take forward the implementation of the Recovery Plan for the Baltic Harbour Porpoise (also called Jastarnia Plan) will meet for the sixth time on 23 and 24 February 2010. At the kind invitation of Poland, the participating experts from the environment and fisheries sectors from around the Baltic Sea, will meet at the Hel Marine Station near Gdansk.
A revised version of the Jastarnia Plan was adopted by the Parties to ASCOBANS at their 6th Meeting of Parties in September 2009. Originally finalised in 2002, the Jastarnia Plan was developed in reaction to the critical conservation status of the only cetacean species native to the Baltic Sea, which despite strict protection on all political levels still experiences higher human-induced mortality than the small population can sustain.
Participants are requested to register by 12 February 2010. More information can be requested from the ASCOBANS Secretariat.

Welcome to Borja Heredia as ASCOBANS Senior Advisor
Bonn, 12 January 2010 - Borja Heredia has entered on duty as the new Scientific and Technical Officer at the CMS Secretariat. He will also serve as the ASCOBANS Senior Advisor, replacing Marco Barbieri in this function. Borja is well known to many in CMS circles as he has been Spain's representative on the Scientific Council, and has participated in several CMS COPs and MOU meetings, as well as being involved in other MEAs such as CBD and CITES.
Borja is a biologist with a PhD in Ecology from the University of Madrid. Since 1986 he has worked at the Spanish Ministry of Environment focussing on the conservation of threatened species, planning research, drawing up strategies and organising projects in the field. He has been involved in the conservation of several CMS Appendix I species including the Spanish Imperial Eagle, the White-headed Duck and the Mediterranean Monk Seal. The recovery of the Iberian Lynx has also been one of his main occupations in recent years. He also has experience of conflict resolution among different interest groups and has addressed many other factors affecting migratory species such as electrocution and invasive alien species.
From 1992 to 1995 he worked for BirdLife International in Cambridge, developing action plans for globally threatened birds of prey in Europe.
In relation to the marine environment, Borja has been involved in the designation of a marine protected area in the Bay of Biscay, the so called Le Danois Bank, a submarine mountain extremely rich in biodiversity. He has also been instrumental in the approval of an ad-hoc regulation for the protection of cetaceans in Spain. He has also been responsible of a project to cooperate with the Ministry of Defence in order to prevent damage to marine mammals due to the use of sonar for military purposes.

International Project on the Baltic Harbour Porpoise Receives EU Funding
31 December 2009 - SAMBAH - Static Acoustic Monitoring of the Baltic Sea Harbour Porpoise - is an international project involving all EU countries around the Baltic Sea, with the ultimate goal to secure the conservation of the harbour porpoise in the Baltic Sea. This population is highly endangered, with only a few hundred individuals remaining.
For the protection of this population, the Jastarnia Plan, a Recovery Plan for Baltic Harbour Porpoises, was drawn up under the auspices of ASCOBANS in close collaboration with other organisations and endorsed by Parties in 2002. In September 2009, a revised and updated version of the Jastarnia Plan was adopted. The Plan identifies major threats and makes recommendations to address these. It also acknowledges that data of porpoise abundance in the Baltic Proper is deficient and limited to the south-western part of the Baltic. SAMBAH therefore aims at estimating densities and total abundance and produce distribution maps of harbour porpoises in the Baltic Sea, to identify possible hotspots, habitat preferences and areas of higher risk of conflict with anthropogenic activities. This information is needed for more effective conservation measures.
The project kick-off meeting will be held in conjunction with the Jastarnia group meeting in February 2010. The deployment of the approximately 300 Static Acoustic Monitoring units throughout the study area will start in January 2011.
More information on the project can be found here.

Workshop on Cetacean Bycatch: effectiveness of current mitigation measures and possible improvements in the future - 20 March 2010
30 December 2009 - In the margins of the 24th Conference of the European Cetacean Society, to be held in Stralsund, Germany, from 22-24 March 2010, a joint workshop by ASCOBANS, the European Commission and the North Sea Foundation will be held on 20 March.
For many years, cetacean by-catch has been a major conservation issue facing a variety of cetacean species in Europe, with harbour porpoises particularly affected. Mitigation measures developed have included the introduction of acoustic alerting devices (e.g. pingers), fishery management procedures (e.g. no take zones, "quotas", and effort management), and gear modification (e.g. changes in net type, acoustically reflective nets, floating head ropes, separator grids, etc). Within the EU Common Fisheries Policy, there have been a number of new regulations introducing mitigation measures with the aim of reducing bycatch. Notable amongst these have been Council Regulations 2371/2002 (Article 2) regarding the Common Fisheries Policy, 92/43/EEC (Article 12.4) calling for bycatch monitoring programmes, and 812/2004 & 2187/2005 that introduced the widespread use of pingers in particular gillnet fisheries and phased out driftnets in the Baltic.
Unfortunately, for various reasons, a number of the measures outlined above have not been very successful. Therefore a new approach is needed that will lead to a closer collaboration with fishermen to reduce unwanted mortality. The workshop aims to provide an up to date review of mitigation measures and their effectiveness - their strengths and limitations, and then to discuss possible new cooperative approaches to improve the chances of successful mitigation of cetacean bycatch amongst different fisheries within Europe.
More information on the workshop and the registration procedure can be found here.

Open Tender for a Review of Trend Analyses in the ASCOBANS Area - deadline for applications 27 December 2009

14 December 2009 - The 16th Meeting of the Advisory Committee recommended that a review of trend analyses of stranding and other data of small cetaceans in the ASCOBANS area be carried out. The aim is to provide AC members with an accessible, readable and succinct overview of trends in status, distribution and impacts of small cetaceans within the ASCOBANS Agreement Area. This should combine data sets of different stakeholders and countries.

Applicants are requested to make an offer to the Secretariat by 27 December 2009. Please refer to the Terms of Reference for details.

Elizabeth Maruma Mrema appointed new Executive Secretary of CMS
Bonn, 2 December 2009 - UNEP Executive Director, Mr. Achim Steiner has appointed Elizabeth Maruma Mrema as the new Executive Secretary of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) Secretariat, based in Bonn with effect from 1 December 2009. The announcement was made today at the 36th Meeting of the CMS Standing Committee.

In the four months preceding her appointment, Ms Mrema, the national of the United Republic of Tanzania, served as Officer in Charge of the CMS Secretariat.

As head of the CMS Secretariat, she also serves as Acting Executive Secretary to ASCOBANS.
[Read on]

Call for Applications - Internship Programme 2010 UNEP/CMS Family (CMS, AEWA, EUROBATS and ASCOBANS)
Bonn, 22 October 2009 - The UNEP/CMS Secretariat would like to announce that the Internship Programme for 2010 has been advertised and is ready to receive applications for the selection process. The application deadline will be 30.11.09, the final decision regarding the selection on 15.12.09 at the latest. We encourage students with an academic background in environmental science, biology, law, political science, geography, agriculture and media or similar studies to send the relevant documents (CV, completed questionnaire and application letter) to the UNEP/CMS Secretariat, which coordinates all applications for CMS, AEWA, EUROBATS and ASCOBANS. Please refer to the following website for more detailed information:
http://www.cms.int/secretariat/internships.htm
Please disseminate this information to possible candidates. We have benefited from important contributions by interns in the past and are looking forward to continuing with a well-structured and internationally orientated internship programme for 2010. We aim to achieve a balanced regional representation in the internship programme; therefore applications from all over the world are encouraged. For any questions please contact the coordinator for the UNEP/CMS Family Internship Programme, Mr Henning Lilge, by e-mail (hlilge@cms.int) or phone (+49 228 815 2437).

18 September 2009: 6th Meeting of the Parties agrees Action Plans for Harbour Porpoises in the North and Baltic Sea
The 6th Meeting of the Parties to ASCOBANS met in Bonn, Germany, from 16-18 September 2008.
Under the chairmanship of Jussi Soramäki (Finland), supported by Paulus Tak (Belgium) in the vice-chair, the meeting agreed a number of measures to protect and enhance populations of small whales and dolphins in European waters. These include the adoption of two action plans for harbour porpoises, as well as the development of guidelines to address the adverse effects of underwater noise on marine mammals, for example caused by construction of offshore windfarms.
The full press release is available here.
Die deutsche Pressemitteilung finden Sie hier.

16-18 September 2009: 6th Meeting of the Parties to ASCOBANS, UN Campus, Bonn, Germany
The 6th Meeting of the Parties (MOP6) to the Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas (ASCOBANS) will take place at the Secretariat's seat in Bonn, Germany, from 16-18 September 2009.
Representatives of the 10 ASCOBANS Parties, as well as of non-Party Range States and intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations qualified in cetacean conservation and management, will meet to progress the conservation of small cetaceans in the ASCOBANS Agreement area. Intergovernmental or non-governmental organizations interested in attending MOP6 should send a request for admission to the Secretariat no later than 18 June 2009. Please see the official invitation letter for details.
The Meeting of the Parties is the decision-making body of the Agreement. It meets every three years to assess progress and develop further steps in the implementation of ASCOBANS. The agenda of the meeting will include important issues such as a revised version of the Recovery Plan for Baltic Harbour Porpoises (Jastarnia Plan); a new Conservation Plan for the Harbour Porpoise in the North Sea; a Communication, Education and Public Awareness Plan for ASCOBANS; a possible new format for the Annual National Reports; the possible inclusion of all cetacean species occurring in the Agreement area in the treaty; anthropogenic underwater noise; criteria and guidelines for the establishment of marine protected areas for cetaceans; and scientific findings on small cetacean population structure in the Agreement area and the implications for conservation.
Based on strategic considerations on the future of the Agreement, Parties will also decide on a work plan for the years 2010-2012, which includes activities for the Secretariat, the Advisory Committee and the governmental institutions in the Party States, as well as the budgetary and administrative provisions for the Agreement for the next three years.
Documents for the meeting will be posted here.

New Interim Management in Place for CMS
Bonn/Nairobi, 30 July 2009–- Elizabeth Maruma Mrema has been appointed Officer in Charge of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) by Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) as of 27 July 2009. In addition, Mr. Steiner has appointed Bert Lenten, the current Executive Secretary of the African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) Secretariat as Acting Deputy Executive Secretary of CMS, effective since 2 July 2009.
Read on

Farewell to Rob Hepworth
Bonn, 27 July 2009 - Mr. Robert Hepworth, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) Secretariat left the CMS Secretariat on 27 July 2009. In addition, Mr. Lahcen El-Kabiri has recently left the position of Deputy Executive Secretary of CMS to take up new functions as the head the new CMS managed office to oversee the implementation of the Agreements on birds of prey and dugongs in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates.

Mr Hepworth, who joined the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2000 as the Deputy Director at the then Division of Environmental Conventions (DEC) in Nairobi, was appointed as Executive Secretary of the Convention on Migratory Species by the former Executive Director of UNEP, Dr. Klaus Töpfer in August 2004. Mr El Kabiri joined the CMS Secretariat as Deputy Executive Secretary one month later. Since then, the two successfully led the CMS Secretariat through two Conferences of the Parties (COP8 in Nairobi, November 2005 and COP9 in Rome, December 2008).

Under their guidance and leadership, the Convention and its Secretariat have lived through a period of intense growth and development.

Main achievements of the Convention and its Secretariat during the past five years include;

• Nine new CMS Agreements and Memoranda of Understandings (MoU) for the conservation of species were concluded, including a legally-binding Agreement on Gorillas, and MoUs for West African Elephants, Indian Ocean and Pacific Dugongs, African-Eurasian birds of prey, Small Cetaceans and Manatees in Western Africa, Monk Seals in the Atlantic, South American Grassland Birds, Andean Flamingos and the Ruddy-headed Goose.
• An International Scientific Task Force on Avian Influenza and Wild Birds was set up in 2006, which included AEWA, BirdLife International, CBD, CIC, CMS, FAO, ISDR, OiE, WHO, Ramsar, Wildlife Conservation Society, Wetlands International and ZSL as partners. The Scientific Task Force on Avian Influenza increased its influence over the years through the organisation of over a dozen teleconferences, symposiums, workshops and press conferences and the translation of its advisory brochure in 7 languages.
• Launch and management of three successful "Year of" campaigns (Year of the Turtles, Year of the Dolphin and Year of the Gorilla) which helped to raise the international profile of CMS and were also used to foster partnerships with the private sector, for example with the TUI Travel Company for the Year of the Dolphin.
• Establishment of the "Friends of CMS" in October 2005, a charity registered in Germany, which provides active support to CMS initiatives as well as functioning as a bridge between politics and industry.
• Increase of the membership of the Convention by 26 Parties to a total of 112 Parties (as of August 2009) with the majority of new CMS Parties coming from Latin America, Africa, Asia and Oceania.
• A number of new partnerships and other agreements have been signed with other international wildlife conservation organisations, such as with BirdLife International, Wetlands International, CIC, WDCS, IFAW, AMMPA, WCS and WAZA and a Joint Work Programme with CITES.
• Recent establishment of a new CMS outposted office in Abu Dhabi supported by the UAE to manage the implementation of specific CMS instruments of key importance to that region.
• Establishment of strong ties with the host City of Bonn, with a number of public events recently conducted to mark the 30th Anniversary of the Bonn Convention.

18-26 July 2009: Winner of the third "ASCOBANS Outreach and Education Award" organises the 8th UK National Whale and Dolphin Watch

A jury formed at the 16th Meeting of the Advisory Committee (Brugge, Belgium, 20-24 April 2009) decided on the winner of the 3rd ASCOBANS Outreach and Education Award, which will be presented to the winner during the 6th Meeting of the Parties to ASCOBANS (16-18 September 2009, UN Campus, Bonn, Germany). The award was established to go to an individual or institution in recognition of the best cetacean conservation-related PR/educational initiative. It was with unanimous support that Dr Peter Evans, Research Director of the Sea Watch Foundation, was selected for the prize.

Previous winners were the Hel Marine Station in Poland (2005) and Petra Deimer and the Society for the Conservation of Marine Mammals (GSM) (2007) for their work highlighting the plight of the Baltic Harbour Porpoises which are near to extinction.

The UK National Whale and Dolphin Watch week, is one of many outreach events organised by Sea Watch. This annual activity gives members of the public the opportunity to join experienced observers around the coastline to collect sightings. In total, 28 species of dolphins, whales and porpoises have been recorded in UK & Irish waters. More information

3 July 2009: Open Tender for a Coordinator for the ASCOBANS North Sea Harbour Porpoise Conservation Plan - deadline for applications 30 July
ASCOBANS has drawn up a Conservation Plan for harbour porpoises in the North Sea. This has been tabled as a document for the 6th Meeting of Parties in September 2009 (to be downloaded here), when it will hopefully be formally adopted by the Parties to ASCOBANS. In the meantime, uncontroversial parts of the plan should start to be implemented and time-limited funding is available for a part-time coordinator. The Advisory Committee suggested that this be done by a contract to a relevant institution or experienced individual based in a North Sea Party to ASCOBANS.
Applicants are requested to make an offer to the Secretariat by 30 July 2009. Please refer to the Terms of Reference for details.

2 July 2009: Harbour Porpoises Slow Speed Boat Rallye in German Baltic Sea

11 June 2009: Open Tender for the Development of a Fisheries Leaflet for ASCOBANS - deadline for applications 30 June
The Triennium Work Plan for the Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas (ASCOBANS) requests the development of targeted information material for fishermen. This material should focus on conservation issues facing small cetaceans in the region, especially with respect to bycatch issues.
Based on an analysis of existing material and gaps and in consultation with the Parties and partners as appropriate, a consultant is sought to develop a leaflet for fishers in the ASCOBANS Area and suggest possible further material to be developed in the future.
Applicants are requested to make an offer to the Secretariat by 30 June 2009. Please refer to the Terms of Reference for details.

17 May 2009 UPDATE: The 7th International Day of the Baltic Harbour Porpoise - Reports and Activities
The 7th International Day of the Baltic Harbour Porpoise was celebrated in several cities with great activities.
In Poland the Hel Marine Station of the Institute of Oceanography of Gdansk University organized a special information stand and an exhibition about the harbour porpoise. Children could participate in a drawing contest to win postcards and stickers as well as a special award from the new sponsor Lotos Group. In addition, a project, "Active Protection of the Baltic Harbour Porpoises against bycatch in Puck Bay", was presented to the public. With this project, a temporary acoustic barrier is set up each year across the bay from Hel to Gdynia, keeping the porpoises out of an area with high risk of bycatch.
In Stralsund an information stand at the German Oceanographic Museum informed visitors about the small whale of the Baltic Sea and ASCOBANS. A porpoise detector and a skull served as additional demonstration material. Children could test their knowledge about the harbour porpoise in a quiz.
On 13 May, an educational seminar for about 100 schoolchildren, their teachers and parents was the start of this year's celebration of the International Day of the Harbour Porpoise in the Lithuanian Sea Museum. Afterwards, the pupils drew pictures that were exhibited in the dolphinarium of the museum. ASCOBANS, the Lithuanian Ministry of Environment and the company "Premia KPC" supported the event. On 17 May almost 500 visitors saw the ASCOBANS exhibition and films from the Fjord & Bælt Centre. The ASCOBANS exhibition will be displayed in the museum until autumn 2009.
In Finland the day was acclaimed in the Särkänniemi Dolphinarium, where children could take part in a drawing competition and other activities. Also, Mr Kai Mattsson gave an interesting lecture on porpoises and the threats they face in the Baltic Sea. Summing up, the 7th International Day of the Baltic Harbour Porpoise was a full success.

17 May 2009: The 7th International Day of the Baltic Harbour Porpoise
On Sunday, 17 May 2009, the International Day of the Baltic Harbour Porpoise will be celebrated around the shores of the Baltic Sea for the 7th time.
The Secretariat has received notification of events planned in Finland (Särkänniemi Dolphinarium), Germany (Ozeaneum Stralsund and Gesellschaft zum Schutz der Meeressäugetiere), Lithuania (Lithuanian Sea Museum), Poland (Hel Marine Station) and Sweden (Havets Hus in Lysekil). All these institutions have received information material from the Secretariat for their events, such as leaflets, posters and postcards. Further, two sets of the newly developed ASCOBANS exhibition in English have been shipped to Lithuania and Sweden for their events.
Information about IDBHP events of the past is contained in the Handbook, which can be downloaded here.
All participating institutions are encouraged to report back to the Secretariat about their events. We will put a short report on the activities on this website and include the information and photos in the next update of the Handbook.

20-24 April 2009 UPDATE: 16th ASCOBANS Advisory Committee Paved the Way for the Next Meeting of Parties
The ASCOBANS Advisory Committee held its 16th meeting from 20-24 April 2009 in the beautiful city of Brugge, Belgium. The delegates enjoyed the proverbial Belgian hospitality while debating progress made in the implementation of the Agreement and recommendations to be made to the Meeting of Parties in autumn of this year. Nine of the member states to the Agreement were represented at the meeting, as well as three intergovernmental and seven non-governmental organisations and one invited expert. Among its main outcomes, the meeting agreed on final drafts of the revised ASCOBANS Recovery Plan for Harbour Porpoises in the Baltic Sea (Jastarnia Plan) and the ASCOBANS Conservation Plan for Harbour Porpoises in the North Sea, and transmitted them to the Meeting of the Parties for formal adoption. The meeting also established intersessional working groups tasked to further develop current drafts of a revised format for annual national reports and of a Communication, Education and Public Awareness (CEPA) Plan for ASCOBANS, with a view to their submission to the Meeting of the Parties for consideration. On the institutional side, the meeting recommended three options for future ASCOBANS Secretariat arrangements for further consideration by the Meeting of the Parties. A report of the meeting is available here

20-24 April 2009: 16th Meeting of the Advisory Committee, Brugge, Belgium
The ASCOBANS Secretariat gratefully accepted the kind offer of Belgium to host the 16th Meeting of the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee (AC) in Brugge at the 'Oud Sint-Jan' Conference Centre. More information on the venue, transport and accommodation will be posted shortly.
The AC's role is to provide advice and information to the Secretariat and the Parties between the sessions of the decision-making body of the Agreement, the Meeting of Parties (MOP), thereby facilitating the implementation of the Agreement. Reflecting its dual role in overseeing both issues of administration and conservation science, the programme will be divided in two separate sessions. Starting on Monday, 20 April at 1pm, the participants will focus on the programmatic aspects of the Agreement's implementation for two and a half days. Following this, a session dealing with administrative and budgetary issues will start at lunchtime on Thursday, 23 April. The meeting will close on Friday in the early afternoon. Meeting documents will be posted here as they become available.

4 March 2009: ECS Takes Stand on Sonar Mitigation
The 23rd Annual Conference of the European Cetacean Society was held in Istanbul, Turkey, on 2-4 March 2009. The Conference, with the theme "Climate Change and Marine Mammals", was divided in different thematic sections, in which latest research on cetaceans and pinnipeds was presented; a lot of the results with direct or indirect conservation and management implications. It also afforded an excellent opportunity to establish closer links with the scientific community and enlist support for CMS and ASCOBANS marine mammal work.

The Conference was preceded by a series of workshops. Ms Heidrun Frisch, the CMS Marine Mammals Officer and ASCOBANS Coordinator, attended three workshops on "Reconciling diverse perspectives for cetacean communication", "Moving towards a standardized population estimate approach for Monachus monachus" and "Beaked whales and active sonar: transiting from research to mitigation".

The "beaked whale" workshop especially was of high interest for both CMS and ASCOBANS. Both MEAs have passed Resolutions on the importance of mitigating noise impacts on marine species. Beaked whales have been found to be particularly sensitive to acoustic disturbance stemming from sonar. After providing a background to the current field research investigating mitigation techniques, as well as legal and official perspectives about the feasibility of promoting a standardised mitigation protocol, the participants agreed to form a drafting group to produce concise mitigation guidelines. These are expected to be available by mid-April and will be forwarded to the ASCOBANS Advisory Committee and other relevant bodies. The ECS membership adopted a strong statement on the need for effective mitigation on 4 March, which can be downloaded here.

23-25 February 2009: 5th Meeting of the Jastarnia Group, Turku, Finland 
The ASCOBANS Working Group to take forward the implementation of the Recovery Plan for the Baltic Harbour Porpoise (also called Jastarnia Plan) will meet for the fifth time in February 2009. At the invitation of Finland, the participating experts from the environment and fisheries sectors from around the Baltic Sea, will meet in Turku. The Jastarnia Plan was finalised in 2002 in reaction to the critical conservation status of the only cetacean species native to the Baltic Sea, which despite strict protection on all political levels still experiences higher human-induced mortality than the small population can sustain. Besides discussing progress made and further priorities in the implementation of the Jastarnia Plan by the ASCOBANS Party States, the Group will also work towards finalising the revision of the Jastarnia Plan, which was started in 2007. We hope to have a new version ready to be presented to the Advisory Committee in April 2009.

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