After years of debate and negotiation, United Nations (UN) countries on Monday approved the first treaty to protect international waters, an agreement that will allow for the establishment of marine protected areas in that area of the world ocean that is often unprotected. This pact, which has been demanded by environmental and scientific associations for many years, was channeled back in March when the agreement was reached after a 36-hour meeting in New York. However, the final adoption of the text was still pending and was carried out this Monday without a vote as it was adopted by consensus.
The treaty will enable the establishment of management tools, including marine protected areas, “to conserve and sustainably manage vital habitats and species on the high seas” in international waters, the United Nations said in a statement Monday. “These actions are essential” to achieve the goal agreed at the Montreal Biodiversity Summit in December to protect 30% of the planet’s land and sea surface by 2030. “They have breathed new life and given the ocean a chance,” said António Guterres, UN Secretary-General, who welcomed the deal. “They complied, and they did so at a critical moment,” he added, of a pact the UN has called “historic.”
When speaking of the high seas or international waters, one is referring to the sea areas that are not part of countries’ exclusive economic zones, ie those that extend more than 200 miles from the coasts controlled by states. They cover most of the ocean (64%) and although there are regulations and sectoral entities that regulate some aspects such as maritime transport or fisheries, there is no international instrument focused on protecting marine biodiversity. Without a strong and ambitious treaty, it is virtually impossible to meet the target of protecting 30% of oceans and land by 2030 (known as the 30×30 target), to which countries committed at the biodiversity summit at the end of last year Montréal.
The pact passed this Monday also lays the foundations for assessing the “environmental impact of human activities” in areas outside of national jurisdiction and taking them into account in decision-making. “It also provides, for the first time, an international legal framework for assessing the cumulative impacts of activities and consequences of climate change, ocean acidification and related impacts in areas outside of national jurisdiction,” the UN added this Monday after the adoption of the Agreement.
In addition, the agreement, signed in New York, aims to create a “framework for the fair and equitable sharing of benefits from activities related to marine genetic resources”, an aspect considered crucial for the future. The aim is to ensure that “these activities benefit all of humanity”.
To develop this pact, a Conference of the Parties and a scientific and technical body will be established, which will meet regularly to examine, among other things, the establishment of marine protection zones in international waters. The agreement will be open for signature for two years from September 20, 2023 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. It will come into force after ratification by at least 60 nations.
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