The Intergovernmental Conference on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ) today reached agreement on text for an internationally binding legal instrument that, among other things, would establish a framework and governance structure for designating marine protected areas in international waters.
A spokesman for UN Secretary-General António Guterres called the agreement “a victory for multilateralism and for global efforts to counter the destructive trends facing ocean health,” adding that it is “crucial for addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution” and “vital” for achieving ocean goals and objectives under the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
U.S. Asst. Sec. of State for the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Monica Medina said the agreement would “create a coordinated approach to establishing marine protected areas on the high seas” and “will be critical to meeting our shared goal of conserving or protecting at least 30% of the global ocean by 2030.”
In terms of immediate next steps, agreement text will be reviewed for grammatical errors and internal inconsistencies, and then translated into the UN’s 6 official languages, after which time the UN will convene a meeting to formally adopt the text. Subsequently, 60 UN member governments must ratify the agreement through their own national processes. Upon ratification by the 60th government, the agreement will become international law within 120 days (nations that ratify after the treaty becomes international law will be bound to Agreement within 30 days of their ratification).