Our Ocean Conference Commitments - Chile

• (2014) Foreign Minister Munoz of Chile announced Chile’s intention to host a follow-on Our Ocean Conference in 2015.
• (2015) Chile announced the creation of the Nazca-Desventuradas Marine Park, a 297,000 square kilometer area covering much of the exclusive economic zone of the islands of San Ambrosio and San Felix and contributing greatly to the conservation of this area’s rich marine biodiversity.
• (2015) Chile announced that it is committing to create a marine protected area in the 720,000 square kilometer exclusive economic zone of the iconic Island of Rapa Nui – known around the world as Easter Island – working with the Rapa Nui community and taking into consideration their ancestral fishing and in compliance with current norms established by Convention No. 169 of the International Labor Organization.  Once complete, this will be one of the largest marine protected areas in the world.
• (2015) Chile announced the creation of a new Ocean Policy Council to address the challenges facing its ocean waters and marine resources, to ensure their sustainability and security and help guarantee the right of its citizens to live in an environment free of pollution while preserving nature and protecting the marine environment.
• (2015) Chile announced the creation of a new group called Friends of the Port State Measures Agreement to promote the Agreement’s entry into force by bringing countries from Latin America and the Caribbean that have ratified the Agreement together with countries that have not yet joined in order to provide assistance and support, with the Global Ocean Commission acting as its Secretariat.
• (2015) SONAPESCA, Chile’s National Fishing Association, announced on behalf of Chile’s industrial fishing sector a new Declaration on Responsible Fishing, which commits to working in seven development areas to promote responsible fishing based on specific, published international commitments and standards.
• (2015) Senator Lagos Weber from the Valparaíso Region of Chile announced that he has introduced a bill in the Chilean Congress to officially adopt the National Day of the Ocean on June 8, the United Nations World Oceans Day, and to instruct all public institutions to celebrate the day.  In addition, Senator Lagos Weber announced the creation of the Our Ocean Chile Foundation to focus on environmental marine education around World Oceans Day.  The foundation will educate elementary school students in the Valparaiso Region about ocean issues.
• (2015) The United States and Chile announced an agreement on a joint research and development effort to test two of the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s newest generation Deep Ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunami (DART-4G) observational sensors.  The Chilean Hydrographic and Oceanographic Service of the Navy (SHOA) with NOAA experts, deployed the buoys from their new Cabo do Hornos research vessel and will maintain them over the next five years.  The DART 4G can be deployed directly over a seismically active area, giving the possibility of more lead time for coastal communities and others to prepare for a tsunami.  NOAA and SHOA also intend to provide assistance in best practices in tsunami forecasting, including evolving detection capabilities, modeling, and data management, for Pacific Ocean countries.