15th Scientific and Technical Committee 

The 11th and 12th of September 2023, Monaco hosted the 15th Scientific and Technical Committee of the Pelagos Agreement. The meeting took place in the Auditorium Ranieri III, in the presence of the Permanent Secretariat of the Pelagos Agreement, representatives from the delegations of France, Italy and Monaco, coordinators of the Working Groups of the Agreement, consultants and observers from various national and international organizations.

The speeches, moderated by STC president Éric Béraud, covered several topics; new tools, maps, and techniques were showcased,  to study the distribution of marine mammal populations in the Sanctuary and the associated risks related to human activities (such as maritime traffic, chemical pollution, plastic waste dispersion, and noise pollution); the new version of the Pelagos Partnership Charter and the updating and harmonization of the internal regulations of the Pelagos Partnership Agreement were presented, as well as the activities carried out by the Working Groups in the biennium. 

Finally, the STC drew up recommendations to present to the 9th Meeting of the Parties (20-22 novembre 2023), aimed, among other things, at strengthening cooperation with other relevant international agreements. 

The Permanent Secretariat of the Pelagos Agreement wishes to thank the Delegations and all the attendees for their involvement, that has brought valuable insights to the STC.