A primer on what the high seas treaty is and how it will work

Approval of a high -sea treaty means that new protections will be possible in international waters for the first time.

Here is an overview of what the treaty is, why is important and what is still to come.

Fortunately known as the biodiversity agreement beyond national jurisdiction, the Treaty is the first legally binding agreement aimed at protecting marine biodiversity in international waters. These areas, which are located beyond the jurisdiction of a single country, represent almost two thirds of the ocean and almost half of the surface of the earth.

Until now, no complete legal framework has existed to create protected sea areas or apply conservation on the high seas.

Despite their distance, the high seas undergoes increasing pressure of overfishing, climate change and the threat of the exploitation of the deep sea. Environmental defenders warn that without appropriate protection, marine ecosystems in international waters are faced with irreversible damage.

“Until now, it has been the Far West on the high seas,” said Megan Randles, the world’s political political advances in Greenpeace. “Now we are fortunate to put the protections in place correctly.”

The treaty is also essential to achieve what is called the global objective “30×30” – an international commitment to protect 30% of the land and the sea of ​​the planet by 2030.

The Treaty creates a legal process so that countries establish marine areas protected on the high seas, including potentially destructive rules of activity such as exploitation and geo-engineering in depth. It also establishes a framework for sharing technology, financing mechanisms and scientific collaboration between countries.

Above all, decisions under the treaty will be made multilaterally by what is called a parties conference rather than by individual countries acting alone.

Friday, the ratification by a 60th country sparked a count of 120 days before the Treaty came into force. Countries can already start to plan protected areas on the high seas, but formal proposals will only advance once the monitoring mechanisms and decision -making rules are established.

The first conference of the parties must take place in the year following the entry into force of the treaty. He will lay the foundations for implementation, including decisions on governance, financing and creation of key organizations to assess marine protection proposals.

Environmental groups push even more countries to ratify the Treaty and do so quickly – the more country there is, the higher the implementation of the Treaty will be stronger and more representative. There is a carrot so that the countries do it. Only those who ratify this first conference will be eligible to vote on critical decisions that determine how the treaty will work.

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