Oil spills are particular threats in West Asia and the Caribbean, while infrastructure development for the tourism industry puts stress on natural coastal areas around the world, particularly in small island developing states. There is widespread alarm in Asia and the Pacific, North America, Europe, and West Asia regarding the overexploitation of marine fisheries and consequent declining stocks of commercial fish species. Globally, more than 60 per cent of marine fisheries are heavily exploited. A ir pollution problems are multifaceted and pervasive. Acid rain and transboundary air pollution, once problems only in Europe and parts of North America, are now becoming apparent in parts of the Asia-Pacific region as well as parts of Latin America.
Large regions are at risk from the effects of both climate change and acidification.
All regions express concern over global warming, but special emphasis is placed by developing countries on the need for adaptive mechanisms to cope with accompanying climate variability and sea-level change. T he impacts of current consumption and production patterns and associated waste generation, particularly on personal health and well-being, are high on the priority list in both North America and Western Europe and are of concern to other regions, particularly with regard to the use of natural resources for production and consumption processes outside the regions. Subregions with emerging economies, such as those of Eastern Europe, South East Asia, and parts of Latin America and West Asia, face problems associatedwith rapid industrialization. Rising levels of pollutants and greenhouse gases create serious problems of acidification, urban air quality deterioration, and transboundary pollution-all posing increasing health risks. Accumulation of radioactive waste, and the effects of past radioactive spills remain of particular concern in Eastern Europe.