Recalling Article 17 of the Cartagena
Protocol on Biosafety,
Recalling also operational objective
1.8 of the Strategic Plan for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
for the period 2011-2020, adopted as annex I to
decision
BS-V/16, and the programme of work for the present meeting
adopted in annex II to the same decision,
Noting the existence of decisions,
rules and guidelines relevant to the issue of unintentional
transboundary movements of living modified organisms,
Also noting that the Guidance on Risk
Assessment of Living Modified Organisms is not prescriptive and
does not impose any obligations on Parties,
1.Encourages Parties to use,
as guidance, or apply, as appropriate, the following in their
efforts to implement the measures specified in Article 17 of the
Protocol and, in particular, to determine and take appropriate
response measures, including emergency measures, in the event of an
occurrence that leads or may lead to unintentional transboundary
movement of a living modified organism that is likely to cause
significant adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use
of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human
health: (a)Decisions that have been or may be taken in
the context of identifying living modified organisms under Article
18 of the Protocol, in particular those relating to the detection
of living modified organisms; (b)The Guidance on Risk
Assessment of Living Modified Organisms developed by the Ad Hoc
Technical Expert Group on Risk Assessment and Risk Management with
input from the Open-Ended Online Expert Forum;
2.Urges Parties and
invites other Governments and relevant organizations which
have not yet done so to: (a)Make available to the
Biosafety Clearing-House the relevant details of their point of
contact for the purposes of receiving notifications under Article
17 of the Protocol; (b)Establish and maintain
appropriate measures to prevent unintentional transboundary
movements of living modified organisms; and (c)Establish
a mechanism for emergency measures in case of unintentional
transboundary movements of living modified organisms that are
likely to have significant adverse effects on the conservation and
sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account
risks to human health;
3.Invites Parties and other
Governments to cooperate in building the capacity, transferring the
technology and exchanging information necessary to detect and
respond to occurrences resulting in a release that could lead to
unintentional transboundary movement of a living modified organism
that is likely to have significant adverse effects on the
conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking
also into account risks to human health;
4.Requests Parties and
invites other Governments and relevant organizations to
provide views and information to the Executive Secretary, six
months prior to the seventh meeting of the Conference of the
Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Protocol, on
any challenges and experiences relating to the implementation of
Article 17 of the Protocol and on the scope and elements of
possible guidance or tools that may facilitate appropriate
responses by Parties to unintentional transboundary movements of
living modified organisms;
5.Requests the Executive
Secretary to prepare a synthesis of the views referred to in
paragraph 4 above for consideration by the seventh meeting of the
Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to
the Protocol.
the adoption
of this decision, the Conference of the Parties to the Convention,
by paragraph 1 of its decision XI/10, decided "to
maintain the current periodicity of its meetings until 2020, and
that its future meetings will take place in 2014, 2016, 2018 and
2020".