Protection of the South Pacific environment: Convention for the Protection of the Natural Resources and Environment of the South Pacific Region (The SPREP Convention)

In November 1988 17 countries adopted the Convention for the Protection of the Natural Resources and Environment of the South Pacific Region (the SPREP Convention) and its two Protocols: the Protocol for Prevention of Pollution of the South Pacific Region by Dumping and the Protocol concerning Cooperation in Combating Pollution Emergencies in the South Pacific Region. The provisions of the Convention and its Protocols and the extent of their coverage are reviewed here. In addition to its important role in relation to non-nuclear pollution, the SPREP Convention supplement the Treaty of Rarotonga by reinforcing its anti-nuclear waste dumping provisions. As well as regional countries, France, the United Kingdom and the United States have so far signed the Convention and its protocols