Protection of the high seas | Negotiations resume at the UN to write a new treaty

(United Nations) After four unsuccessful sessions, the member states of the UN resume their negotiations on Monday to finally give birth to a treaty intended to protect the high seas, a fragile and vital treasure which covers nearly half of the planet.

After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the 4^e the March meeting was to be the last, but despite progress, the negotiators had run out of time. Hence this new session until August 26 at the United Nations headquarters in New York.

Really the last? Difficult to predict, according to observers.

“The mood of the negotiators is cautious optimism,” a source within the Coalition for a high ambition of this agreement, which brings together around fifty countries led by the European Union (EU), told AFP.

“You have to find a compromise between two big ideas: on the one hand the need to protect the environment and regulate human activities, and on the other, the idea that there is a certain freedom in the high seas. “explains this source.

The high seas begin where the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) of the States end, at a maximum of 200 nautical miles (370 km) from the coasts, and it is therefore not under the jurisdiction of any State.

Even if it represents more than 60% of the oceans and almost half of the planet, it has long been ignored, in favor of coastal areas and a few emblematic species, and only around 1% of this space is protected.

Yet science has proven the importance of protecting the entire ocean ecosystems which produce half of the oxygen we breathe and limit global warming by absorbing a significant part of the CO₂ emitted by human activities.

But these services they render to humanity are in danger, victims of CO₂ (warming, acidification of the water, etc.), pollution of all kinds and overfishing.

A compass ”

It is therefore essential to succeed in finally finalizing this treaty on “the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction” and that it be ambitious, plead both NGOs and States. of the Coalition for High Ambition.

“This treaty is major because it will provide a framework, a compass, principles and rules for the entire international community to manage this common space”, adds Julien Rochette, researcher at the Institute for Sustainable Development and of international relations (IDDRI).

But the latest draft text on the table still has many brackets and various options on several pillars of the treaty, such as the conditions for creating marine protected areas.

The future Conference of the Parties (COP, body bringing together the signatory States) must have “the power to create these marine areas without referring to other organizations”, defends James Hanson, of Greenpeace, while certain questions of cooperation with the many regional maritime organizations (particularly those managing fisheries) still need to be settled.

The powers of the COP also come into play in the discussions on the obligation to carry out environmental impact studies for activities on the high seas, explains Julien Rochette to AFP.

Another sensitive issue is the distribution of possible benefits from the exploitation of genetic resources from the high seas, where pharmaceutical, chemical or cosmetic industries hope to discover miraculous molecules.

While very expensive research at sea is the prerogative of the wealthy, developing countries do not want to miss out on potential benefits from marine resources that do not belong to anyone.

Faced with these potential obstacles, “we will have to take the pulse to see if the blocks have changed”, comments Julien Rochette, classifying the EU, Australia, New Zealand and the developing countries on the side of the enthusiasts, and on the other, Russia and certain “cautious” fishing countries such as Iceland or Japan.