The first plenary meeting of ISO/TC 331 on biodiversity was held online from June 28 to July 2, attracting more than 130 representatives from over 20 countries and liaison organizations such as International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Programmer for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC).
CNIS, as the technical counterpart of ISO/TC 331 in China, organized 18 representatives from Standards Innovative Management Department of SAMR, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, etc. to attend the event, together with relevant personnel from the International Cooperation Department, Branch of Resource and Environment, and Sub-Institute of Agriculture and Food Standardization of CNIS.
Attendees heard the work report of ISO/TC 331 secretariat as well as introductions to liaison organizations and ISO technical work processes, and mainly discussed the scope of work, priorities and establishment of working groups and chairman's advisory group, adopting more than 40 resolutions.
Chinese delegates submitted six international standard proposals and the proposal of setting up the ecological restoration working group. Six standard proposals included general terms for biodiversity, biodiversity assessment, the guide for biodiversity monitoring and assessment - Part 1: forest ecosystem, technical standard for wetland survey, wild bird index - an assessment method for wetland biodiversity and quality, and assessment guideline for genetic diversity of plants and animals based on genomics.
The technical committee has prioritized the proposal of general terms for biodiversity put forward by the Sub-Institute of Agriculture and Food Standardization. The Sub-Institute also gave many constructive advice at the meeting.
CNIS will continue to follow the committee work, strive for the posts of convener and project leader, and actively promote the development of relevant international standards, improving China's global influence in the biodiversity standardization circle and facilitating the completion of the national standards system on biodiversity.
