NICE, France — The race to save the world’s oceans is on.
The United Nations Oceans Conference in Nice, France, ended Friday with promises from world leaders to ratify a global, binding agreement to help protect the world’s oceans by September — paving the way for the world’s very first Conference of the Parties for a High Seas Treaty next year.
“This is a considerable victory,” said French Oceans Ambassador Olivier Poivre d’Arvor in a press conference Friday. “It’s very difficult to work on oceans right now when the United States have withdrawn from almost everything. But the Argentinian president helped a lot. China [promised to ratify]. Indonesia just ratified a few hours ago. So, we won.”
If that happens, it will have been a long time coming. The negotiating process started 20 years ago and the treaty was adopted in 2023, but countries have been slow to ratify and at least 60 must do so for the treaty to come into force. With marine and coastal ecosystems facing multiple threats from climate change, fishing, and pollution, the treaty’s main aim is to establish marine protected areas in international waters, which make up around two thirds of the ocean.
