First treaty to protect marine life in high seas to take effect in January

After Morocco’s 60th nation ratifies it, the first-ever treaty to safeguard marine diversity in international waters will enter force at the beginning of the year.

The Marine Biodiversity Treaty, which was officially adopted in Morocco on Friday, will now go into effect on January 17, 2026, providing new protections for an area that includes up to 10 million different species, many of which are still unidentified.

As the world’s oceans are increasingly threatened by climate change, overfishing, and deep-sea mining, which President Trump has pledged to help restart in international waters, nations have rushed to ratify the agreement.

The treaty’s entry into force, according to Morocco’s Mission to the UN, marked a “milestone for the protection of the ocean” and a “collective commitment” to protecting “marine biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres praised the nations that had so far ratified the agreement and referred to it as “a lifeline for the ocean and humanity” from issues like “climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.”

The agreement, which covers more than two-thirds of the ocean, establishes binding guidelines to protect and sustainably use marine biodiversity, increase benefits, establish protected areas, and advance science and capacity-building, Guterres said, urging governments that have not yet joined to do so without delay.

Additional 122 nations, as well as the European Union, have signed the agreement, indicating their intention to ratify it, in addition to the 60 countries that have already done so.

A true test awaits.

The “true test” of the treaty, according to Leneka Rhoden, the Caribbean Regional Coordinator at the High Seas Alliance, is now “lie in the implementation.”

Our communities already suffer from the effects of ocean degradation and climate change, and we rely heavily on healthy marine ecosystems for food security, livelihoods, and cultural identity, Rhoden said in a statement.

We are confident that this agreement will fulfill its promise to protect the most vulnerable from harm, fair access to resources, and resilience, she continued.

No punitive enforcement body of its own is provided by the treaty. Instead, individual nations are largely responsible for regulating their own ships and businesses. It’s Germany’s responsibility to act if a ship carrying a German flag, for instance, according to Torsten Thiele, the Global Ocean Trust’s expert on ocean governance and blue finance. He argued that this makes ratification by everyone necessary.

He said, “People who haven’t signed up will argue that they are not bound,” if they do.

The High Seas are what?

The international waters that are located outside of any particular nation’s exclusive economic zone, which account for nearly two-thirds of the ocean’s surface and nearly half of the world’s surface.

Beyond the boundaries of national jurisdiction, it also includes what is known as “the Area,” abbreviated as “the Seabed and Subsoil.” that makes up the seafloor of the planet for only about half.

A Conference of the Parties (COP), a decision-making body, will now have to collaborate with regional and international organizations that already oversee various oceans, such as the International Seabed Authority.

Risikens of deep-sea mining

As a few governments and businesses push to quickly expand deep-sea mining, one of the goals of the Marine Biodiversity Treaty is to make sure that countries work toward more fair and equitable sharing of benefits from activities related to marine biodiversity outside of any one nation.

Environmentalists worry that the potential effects of removing deep-sea minerals from the ocean floor, including putting an end to ancient lifeforms like dumbo octopuses and twilight zone corals, will be difficult to predict and will cause even greater distress to whales by altering their sonar communication.

At least 38 nations are pressing for a moratorium on deep-sea mining until more information is available about the potential harm to marine ecosystems, including those that have not yet been explored.

While other nations, including the US under Trump and the small Pacific island nation of Nauru, want to advance, they include island states like the Marshall Islands and Vanuatu as well as bigger nations like Brazil and the United Kingdom.

International efforts continue.

Despite opposition from some governments, the Marine Biodiversity Treaty is the most recent illustration of ongoing efforts to combat environmental threats at the global level.

A global fuel emissions standard for the maritime sector was agreed upon earlier this year by nations at the UN shipping agency. It will reward ships that reduce their emissions and impose an emissions fee on dirty fuels.

After the US pulled out of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) climate discussions in London, the organization reached a compromise that would require “reciprocal measures” to be put in place to cover any fees levied on US ships.

Due to the six-month delay in the development of a landmark treaty to combat plastic pollution, international discussions to develop a landmark treaty failed in August.

The UN’s highest court, however, determined in July that nations must fulfill their climate obligations and that failing to do so could violate international law, potentially allowing the affected countries to seek reparations in upcoming legal proceedings.

Source: Aljazeera