15 October 1992, Niigata, JAPAN

The Northeast Asian Conference on Environmental Cooperation was held from 13 to 15 October , 1992, in Niigata, Japan, with the participation of China, Republic of Korea, Mongolia, Russia and Japan at both national and local government levels, in addition to representatives from three United Nations bodies, UNEP, UNDP, and ESCAP.

Throughout the Conference the participants had open and frank exchanges of information and views on the state of the environment in each country, particularly on air and water quality, marine pollution, waste management and recycling, biodiversity and nature conservation, as well as on the future of environmental cooperation between and among the participating countries.

There was unanimous agreement on the need to strengthen environmental cooperation in the region among all parties concerned, including active involvement of both public and private sectors as well as non-governmental and grassroots organizations.The participants stressed the importance of exchanging information, experience and expertise on a regular basis, through which a process of policy dialogue could be built up on environmental problems of common concern to the region as a whole.

The Conference took note of the initiative of the Korean authorities who organized the 92's Seoul Symposium on 'UNCED and Prospect on the Environmental Regime in the 21st Century', 2-5 September, 1992, and general support was expressed for the further development of an informal Environmental Network established at the Symposium.

In order to facilitate regional cooperation in the field of the environment, it was generally agreed that the Northeast Asian Conference on Environmental Cooperation should be held regularly, in principle on an annual basis, preferably hosted each time by different countries of the region.

Taking into account the unique role of local authorities who are situated close to people's needs and concerns, the participants noted the importance of ensuring active participation of local governments in the process of planning for and implementation of cooperative programmes.

It was pointed out that regional cooperation might initially be focused on selected priority areas in which certain activities have already been initiated, or those which require urgent actions.Among those which were suggested as possible modalities of regional cooperation were: to immediately set up an information sharing and exchanging network, to conduct joint surveys and monitoring activities including on acid rain, coastal and inland water pollution and biodiversity, and to carry out collaborative research and training programmes in some of the specific subject areas.A particularly keen interest was shown among the participants in undertaking case studies on the use of economic instruments for environmental management.

Specific mechanisms for promoting these activities, financial institutional and otherwise, should be further worked out in the near future, hopefully at the next Northeast Asian Conference on Environmental Cooperation, for which there was a kind offer by the Government of the Republic of Korea to host it.In this connection, the United Nations agencies should play an active role in coordinating the efforts and activities of the participating countries as well as of the Unite Nations system as a whole.

The participants expressed their appreciation to the Environment Agency, Japan for organizing this Conference and to the government and people of Niigata Prefecture for their warm hospitality in hosting it.