REPORT OF THE NEAT WORKING GROUP ON WATER POLLUTION“Cleaning Up Our Waters: Finding a Workable Regional Cooperation Framework onWater Pollution”
A One Hotel, Jakarta, August 29th 2017
BACKGROUND
1. On August 29th 2017, experts and scholars from ASEAN Plus Three (APT) countries gathered inJakarta for the NEAT Working Group on Water Pollution meeting. With “Cleaning Up OurWaters: Finding a Workable Regional Cooperation Framework on Water Pollution” asthe main theme, delegates exchanged their knowledge, experiences and views on theissue of water pollution, with a special highlight on marine plastics debris, and thepossibility of regional cooperation to deal with the problem.

WATER POLLUTION IN EAST ASIA
2. Not only becoming more important, seas and rivers are also becoming dirtier. According

to the most recent study, there are around 12.7 Million Metrics Tons (MMT) of plastic
dumped into world’s oceans per year 1 , threatening to turn those seas into massive
sewages. Result of official investigation indicated that only beach garbage in some Asiancountries reach up to nearly 2,000 kilograms per square kilometer, while ocean plastic
debris hit more than one million metric tons
3. The consequences are dire. In economic terms, marine pollution leads to losses in fishing,shipping, tourism and insurance amounting to $ 1.2 billion per year (APEC, 2010). A
report of World Economic Forum in 2016 estimated costs from plastic leakages at $695
million per year for coastal and beach cleaning.
4. The impact goes beyond the economy. Around 267 different species suffer fromentanglement and ingestion of plastics in our seas and oceans. Submerged plastics thatcover coral reefs areas have increased corals death and have prevented corals from
effectively absorbing released carbons, thus accelerating global warming.
1Jambeck, J.R., Geyer, R., Wilcox, C., Siegler, T.R., Perryman, M., Andrady, A., Narayan, R., Law, K.L., 2015b. Plastic
waste inputs from land into the ocean. Science 347, 768–771. doi:10.1126/science.1260352

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5. Water pollution also have huge impact on food security, as 25 to 65% of protein intake among
Southeast Asia is sourced from fish including seafood. Credible studies also indicate thatmarine organism not only plankton, fish juvenile, crabs and shells but also big pelagic
fish and marine mammals (whales) tend to consume plastic debris, thus increasing therisk of health repercussion on humans who consume seafood products. It has been
demonstrated that the possible impact of plastics on organisms was through ingestion of
the size of microscopic (microplastic) similar with the microorganism, leaching ofadditive substances from microplastics and also transferring high concentration ofpollutants.
6. It is alarming that some APT countries are leading contributors of marine plastic debris.

Environmental damages caused by plastic debris are extensive, complicated by most APT
countries’ lack of capabilities to manage urban wastes. Hazardous fishery activities also
contribute to the worsening state of both freshwater and marine ecosystems. As thepresentations in the Working Group have indicated, wastes from anthropogenic activity
particularlys from industry, tourism, household and agricultural sectors have significantly
contributed to the water pollution in APT countries.

Challenges to Tackle Water Pollution, Especially Marine Plastics Debris
7. To tackle the water pollution issue, the Working Group identified various challenges.

These challenges are classified into three major categories: (i) awareness; (ii) regulationand governance; and (iii) implementation.
8. Awareness: The challenges in awareness are: (i) lack of awareness and knowledge among

the general public, as well as lack of incentives to act to solve the problem of waterpollution; and (ii) national education in APT countries do not put enough emphasis on
marine environment conservation; (iii) data and knowledge discrepancy;
9. Regulation and governance: Challenges occurring in the regulation and governanceaspect in many APT countries are: (i) insufficient national legal framework on waterpollution, especially on marine plastics debris and microplastics pollution; (ii) disparity
between local and central government policies; (iii) no sufficient budget allocation to
support infrastructure, facilities, projects, research, and monitoring; (iv) lack of regional
cooperation platform for managing trans-boundary pollution.
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Implementation: Implementation challenges include: (i) Weak law enforcement; (ii) lackof budget and resources; (iii) lack of capacity in terms of manpower, technicalcapabilities, technology, and knowledge; (iv) the absence of solid database, monitoring,and research collaboration among APT countries; (v) limited involvement of private andcivil society sectors in many APT countries; (vi) lack of involvement of the academia andresearch institutions; and (vii) lack of involvement in international scientific cooperation
related to marine plastics debris and microplastics.
Experiences and Best Practices
10. The Working Group also wants to highlight notable experiences of APT countries as bestpractices to tackle water pollution issue. In Singapore, civil society acts as bridge
between government, private sectors, communities and academia to tackle problems.
They raise awareness through bringing people to experience and be involved directlywith environmental problems, while constantly distributing message through social media
and public communication. Another important experience is the importance of leadershipand effective governance. Republic of Korea display instrumental role of government
commitment to translate international treaties into national plans and local actions. These
actions successfully decrease waste percentage significantly in past ten years. Anotherbest practice is on how to creatively decrease the number of pollutants. Japan did so by
converting garbage into resources for construction materials.

RECOMMENDATIONS
11. As a region consisting of APT countries whose welfare depends largely on fresh water

resources, East Asia must move forward to develop a better and more effective
cooperation to deal with the problem of water pollution, especially the issue of marine
plastic debris. By gathering experts from APT countries, this Working Group is designedto start a regional initiative towards that goal.
12. As a result of the discussion in the Working Group, the forum recommends several points

covered in three major categories (awareness, regulation and governance, and policy
implementation).
13. Awareness:a. Create East Asian Open Access Data Center on Marine Pollution;3

b. Initiate joint campaign to raise public awareness by focusing on “experience” (seeit, believe it, do something about it)c. Integrate environmental education related to water waste and pollution to national
education systems.
14. Regulation and Governance:a. Call for stronger leadership by APT Leaders to see the issue of water pollution,
especially marine plastic debris, including ghost fishing, as a major priority.
b. Create cooperation between APT countries to support capacity building,technology transfer and funding mechanism to tackle water pollution, especiallyon topics such as microplastics, microbeads, and marine conservation;c. Encourage joint research to be funded by APT Cooperation Fund (APTCF);
d. Develop common policies on plastics pollution prevention and waste management.
15. Implementation:

a. Create platforms for sharing, learning, and adopting the best practices suited withlocal context (think globally, act locally).
b. Promote the development and standardization of methodologies on marine debris
and microplastics investigation.
c. Undertake joint action to reduce marine debris in East Asian waters.
d. Encourage technology transfer that can help the development of ‘recycling
economy’ in APT countries.
e. Create stronger collaboration between stakeholders, including experts andacademia, civil society, business sector and government at local, national, andregional levels to address the issue.

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