India is yet to sign the treaty. However, it called on efforts for entry into force and implementation of the treaty at the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration held in September 2023
Representative photo from iStock The Blue Leaders High-Level Event on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction was held in Belgium on March 7, 2024, to urge nations to ratify a new treaty to protect the high seas from pollution, climate change and overfishing.
Countries agreed to a new treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ Treaty) in March 2023. It was formally adopted two months later.
Speakers at the Blue Leaders High-Level Event on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction decided to use the United Nations Ocean Conference to be held in 2025 as a platform to bring the BBNJ Treaty into force.
Countries like Belgium, Cape Verde, Greece, Monaco, Nigeria, Norway and the United Kingdom participated in the event.
“These international meetings are very important in putting the political spotlight on the Treaty, as well as building the energy and momentum amongst countries to encourage swift ratification, entry into force and implementation of the Treaty,” Nathalie Rey from High Seas Alliance, told Down To Earth.
So far, 88 countries are signatories to the treaty. Only two — Chile and Palau — have ratified it so far. The BBNJ will “enter into force” when at least 60 countries ratify it.
The agreement was opened for signature on September 20, 2023. It will be closed on September 20, 2025. This means countries have given their consent to be bound to it. “However, it does express the willingness of the signatory state to continue the treaty-making process and to proceed with ratification,” Rey explained.
After this deadline, she added, countries can no longer sign (express their intention to ratify). But they can still accede to the treaty, which has the same legal status as ratification.
The high seas are areas beyond 200 nautical miles from the exclusive economic zones of coastal countries.
The treaty aims to increase the percentage of protected areas on the high seas. Despite covering more than two-thirds of the global ocean, only 1.44 per cent of the high seas are protected.
The treaty will also ensure that profits from marine genetic resources (MGR) — materials of plant, animal or microbes — are shared equitably and fairly. These resources find applications in medicine and pharma.
Additionally, the treaty provides ground rules for Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA), which deal with identifying and evaluating the potential impacts an activity could have on the ocean. Carbon sequestration activities or deep-sea mining, for example, will have to do EIAs. Ocean-based carbon sequestration involves using oceans to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
India is yet to sign the treaty. However, it called on efforts for entry into force and implementation of the treaty at the G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration held in September 2023.
There are concerns over possible delays in ratifying the treaty. “It took 12 years for the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas to be ratified. Let’s hope it does not take that long for this treaty. The oceans cannot wait,” Leticia Carvalho, Head of the Marine and Freshwater Branch of the United Nations Environment Programme, said in a blog post.
Rey warned that there was always a risk that it may take longer to secure the 60 ratifications for the treaty to come into force. But she is positive. “There is such political momentum and support for the Treaty at the high level, also shown by the current number of signatures, that it is highly unlikely the Treaty will not enter into force at all,” she explained.
After the treaty is ratified, countries will still have to address several challenges. Rey noted that there was still a lot of groundwork to be done on how exactly the treaty will function — such as agreeing on the rules of procedure for the bodies that will sit under it, budgets and even where the Secretariat will be based.
At the Blue Leaders event, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo offered to host the BBNJ Secretariat in Brussels.
Countries will also have to work to secure large-scale protection of marine life to address the accelerating climate and biodiversity crises.
In 2022, governments agreed to protect at least 30 per cent of marine life by 2030 as the 15th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity adopted the “Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework”.
The high seas, which make up two-thirds of the ocean, will be key to achieving this target.
“If the Treaty enters into force swiftly in 2025, this only gives us five years to fast-track high seas protection. This will require a huge effort by all stakeholders but given what is at stake if we are not successful, it is a target we cannot afford to miss,” Rey highlighted.
The other challenge is in conducting EIA. Elizabeth Mendenhall and Rebecca R Helm from the University of Rhode Island and Georgetown University argued in a 2024 paper that the EIA process created by the BBNJ Treaty will not be effective at achieving the goals of conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction without strong scientific support.
Although BBNJ decisions must be based on the “best available science and scientific information”, it does not require nor facilitate direct investment in scientific research. The authors make the case for strengthening support for scientific research through a strong and empowered Scientific and Technical Body.
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