The Regional Seas Programme, launched in 1974, is one of the United Nations Environment Programme (UN Environment)’s most significant achievements in the past four decades. Today, more than 143 countries have joined 18 Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plans for the sustainable management and use of the marine and coastal environment. The Action Plan for the Protection, Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Northwest Pacific Region (NOWPAP) is one of them. It was adopted by Japan, the Republic of Korea, the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation in September 1994. NOWPAP is the intergovernmental mechanism to support common regional approach to management and conservation of the North Pacific marine and coastal environment.

NOWPAP’s four Regional Activity Centers (RACs) hosted in each member country are responsible for carrying out individual NOWPAP activities, while Regional Coordinating Unit with two offices (in Toyama, Japan and Busan, R. Korea) coordinate the implementation of the Action Plan. NOWPAP Toyama Office has been generously supported by the Japanese central and prefecture governments since 2004.

The Action Plan for the Protection, Management, and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Northwest Pacific Region (NOWPAP) was adopted by the People’s Republic of China, Japan, the Republic of Korea and the Russian Federation in September 1994 as a part of the Regional Seas Programme of the United Nations Environment Programme. The Northwest Pacific Region features rich marine and coastal ecosystems with commercially important fishing resources. However, the region is also one of the most densely populated areas in the world, resulting in enormous pressures and demands on the coastal and marine environment. NOWPAP activities and projects focus on the five major priorities: assessment of regional environmental conditions, environmental data and information management, development and application of the ecosystem approach to coastal planning and management, implementing effective measures for mutual support during oil and chemical spills at sea, and preventing coastal and marine pollution. NOWPAP activities are being increasingly aligned with the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda. Using the ecosystem-based management approach as a basis, NOWPAP is positioning itself as a regional mechanism for the implementation of ocean-related Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly the achievement of SDG 14 “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”. A network of four NOWPAP Regional Activity Centres (RACs), one in each of the NOWPAP Member States, coordinated by the Regional Coordinating Unit (RCU), with its two offices in Toyama (Japan) and Busan (Korea), ensures the integrated and well-managed implementation of the Action Plan.