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UNITED NATIONS – The island nation of Palau made history this week when it became the first country to ratify last year’s historic United Nations treaty for the protection of the Earth’s oceans.
The so-called High Seas Treaty was adopted by U.N. member states in June, after more than 15 years of discussions.
It can go into effect 120 days after being ratified by 60 countries — a goal activists hope to reach by 2025.
The official U.N. website listing international treaties shows the tiny Pacific archipelago nation of Palau as having ratified the treaty on Monday.
The high seas are defined as the ocean area starting beyond countries’ exclusive economic zones, or 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) off coastlines — covering nearly half the planet.
Nonetheless, they have long been ignored in discussions on the environment.
A key tool in the treaty will be the ability to create protected marine areas in international waters, only around 1% of which is now protected by any sort of conservation measures.
Palau’s leaders “have demonstrated their nation’s commitment to restoring ocean health so that it can continue to sustain billions of people worldwide and protect us from the worst impacts of climate change,” said Rebecca Hubbard, director of non-governmental coalition High Seas Alliance.
The treaty is seen as crucial to reach the goal of protecting 30% of the world’s oceans and lands by 2030, as agreed by governments in a separate historic accord on biodiversity reached in Montreal in 2022.
Talks on the UN High Seas Treaty began in 2004. The idea is to put more money into marine conservation and covers access to and use of marine genetic resources. In short, the aim for this treaty is to protect 30 percent of the planet’s lands and inland waters, as well as of marine and coastal areas by 2030. The five key points to this treaty are:
1. Fresh protection beyond borders
While countries are responsible for the conservation and sustainable use of waterways under their national jurisdiction, the high seas now have added protection from such destructive trends as pollution and unsustainable fishing activities.
Adopted by the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), the “high seas” treaty aims at taking stewardship of the ocean on behalf of present and future generations, in line with the Convention on the Law of the Sea.
2. Cleaner Oceans
Toxic chemicals and millions of tons of plastic waste are flooding into coastal ecosystems, killing or injuring fish, sea turtles, seabirds, and marine mammals, and making their way into the food chain and ultimately being consumed by humans.
More than 17 million metric tons of plastic entered the world’s ocean in 2021, making up 85 per cent of marine litter, and projections are expected to double or triple each year by 2040, according to the latest Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) report.
According to UN estimates, by 2050, there could be more plastic in the sea than fish unless action is taken.
3. Sustainably managing fish stocks
More than one third of global fish stocks are over-exploited, according to the UN.
The treaty underlines the importance of capacity building and the transfer of marine technology, including the development and strengthening of institutional capacity and national regulatory frameworks or mechanisms.
4. Lowering temperatures
Global heating is pushing ocean temperatures to new heights, fueling more frequent and intense storms, rising sea levels, and the salinization of coastal lands and aquifers.
Addressing these urgent concerns, the treaty offers guidance, including through an integrated approach to ocean management that builds ecosystem resilience to tackle the adverse effects of climate change and ocean acidification, and maintains and restores ecosystem integrity, including carbon cycling services.
5. Vital for realizing 2030 Agenda
The new agreement “is critical to addressing the threats facing the ocean, and to the success of ocean-related goals and targets, including the 2030 Agenda, the UN chief said on Monday.
Some of the goals and targets include Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14, which aims at, among other things, preventing and significantly reducing marine pollution of all kinds by 2025, and ending overfishing through science-based management plans in order to restore fish stocks in the shortest time feasible.
The new agreement will enable the establishment of area-based management tools, including marine protected areas, to conserve and sustainably manage vital habitats and species in the high seas and the international seabed area.
To read more on the UN High Seas Treaty: UN News