A Great Achievement in 15 Years... UN Reaches 'Agreement' to Protect Oceans Worldwide

Agreement Reached on the 5th at the UN Headquarters in New York
30% of the World's Oceans Designated as Protected Areas

The United Nations has agreed to establish an international maritime treaty to protect the world's oceans. This is the result of discussions spanning over 15 years.

According to major foreign media reports, Lena Lee, the UN Ambassador for Oceans and the Law of the Sea, announced on the 4th (local time) at the UN headquarters in New York City that the negotiations have been finalized.

Photo by Pixabay

The treaty aims to designate 30% of the world's oceans, including the high seas, as protected areas by 2030 to preserve ecosystems.

In areas designated as protected zones, human activities such as fishing quotas, shipping routes, and deep-sea mineral mining will face restrictions. Specific wording has not yet been disclosed.

The high seas refer to ocean areas extending beyond the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs).

Typically, these are waters located more than 200 nautical miles (approximately 370 km) from the coastlines of countries and are not under national jurisdiction.

The high seas account for 64% of the Earth's oceans, but only 1.2% are officially protected from climate change, overfishing, and resource overexploitation.

Laura Meller of the international environmental organization Greenpeace called the agreement "a historic day for environmental conservation," adding that "it signals that protecting nature and humanity can transcend geopolitics in a divided world."

Liz Curran of the nonprofit Pew Foundation described it as a "groundbreaking achievement," explaining that "protecting the high seas can play a key role in enhancing the Earth's resilience against the impacts of climate change."

The UN has long pursued the establishment of a treaty focused on protecting the high seas to safeguard marine ecosystems, but negotiations have faced difficulties due to differing views among member states. Wealthy and poor countries have failed to reach a consensus regarding the benefits derived from marine resource exploitation.

Discussions on this treaty have continued for more than 15 years in the international community, with the final negotiations lasting two weeks and culminating in a marathon 38-hour meeting.

Curran explained, "It will take some time for the treaty to come into effect. First, each member state must ratify the treaty, and then several institutional bodies, such as a scientific and technical committee, need to be established."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.