Future of the blue planet: Parliament conference on oceans

http://www.europarl.europa.eu/resources/library/images/20190219PHT27360/20190219PHT27360_original.jpgWorried about what is happening to our oceans? Take part in the Parliament's conference on their future taking place on 19 March.

The importance of healthy oceans

The oceans are of crucial importance as they are home to a rich biodiversity, act as climate regulators and offer food security. They also contribute to the European economy with a turnover of €566 billion, providing jobs for nearly 3.5 million people.

However, oceans are under increasing pressure from climate change, over-fishing, marine litter and coastal eutrophication, which is when a body of water contains excessive amounts of minerals and nutrients. This usually leads to an overgrowth of plants and algae and later on a lack of oxygen.

Oceans need to be managed sustainably in order to conserve the fragile marine ecosystems.

Conference

On 19 March, the Parliament will host a conference on the future of oceans, with panel discussions covering global ocean governance; sustainable blue economy; and healthy, clean seas and oceans by 2030.

The conference will start at 14.00 CET with doors opening at noon.

You can register for the conference here and find more information here.

What is an Intergroup?

The Seas, Rivers, Islands and Coastal Areas Intergroup is one of the 27 Intergroups that were approved on 11 December 2019 by the Conference of Presidents for the 9th legislature of the European Parliament. Intergroups can be formed by MEPs from any political group and any parliamentary committee with a view to holding informal exchanges of views on particular issues and promoting contact between MEPs and civil society.

The Seas, Rivers, Islands and Coastal Areas Intergroup brings together more than 100 MEPs from 7 different political groups and 23 Member States.

Intergroups are not Parliament bodies and therefore may not express Parliament's opinion.

Intergroups are subject to internal rules adopted by the Conference of Presidents on 16 December 1999 (last updated on 11 September 2014), which set out the conditions under which intergroups may be established at the beginning of each parliamentary term and their operating rules.

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With the support of the CPMR, Intergroup Secretariat