UN adopts world’s first treaty on high seas, Antonio Guterres lauds member states

After 15 years of hectic negotiations, the United Nations (UN) has finally adopted the world’s first treaty that is legally binding to protect the high seas and preserve marine biodiversity in international waters.

Called the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Treaty (BBNJ), or more widely knowns as the High Seas Treaty, was approved by the 193 UN member states.

The treaty calls for the imposition of rules aimed at protecting the environment and resolving disputes over natural resources, shipping and other matters in waters beyond any country's national jurisdiction.

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“You have delivered. And you have done so at a critical time,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the member nations Monday upon the treaty's adoption.

‘Pumped new life’

In a statement, Guterres said that the member states have "pumped new life and hope to give the ocean a fighting chance” by approving the text.

The new agreement “is critical to addressing the threats facing the ocean, and to the success of ocean-related goals and targets, including the2030 Agenda, the UN chief said on Monday.

The BBNJ is a landmark agreement and would coincide with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which came into force three decades ago.

The UN adopts first treaty to protect high seas

The Law of the Sea treaty regulates seas within a country's territorial waters and exclusive economic zones, leaving nearly half the planet's surface and two-thirds of the ocean unregulated — particularly when it comes to protecting biodiversity.

BBNJ is an extension of that treaty as it encompasses the high seas, beyond the exclusive economic zones or national waters of countries.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN),these areas account for “almost half of the Earth’s surface”.

They are hardly regulated and also least understood or explored for their biodiversity - only 1 per cent of these areas are under protection, IUCN said.

What’s next?

The next step is that the treaty will be open for signature in New York, the headquarters of the UN, for two years starting September 20, the day following a summit on the UN sustainable development goals.

According to the UN, it will take effect after 60 countries ratify the agreement.

The pact is a key plank in efforts to put 30 per cent of the world's land and sea under environmental protection by 2030, a goal set in December.

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