After years of debate and two weeks of intense negotiation, on March 4 United Nations (U.N.) delegates agreed on wording for a treaty to protect marine life in the high seas (UN News). The high seas, or the marine areas beyond any nation’s jurisdiction, compose nearly two-thirds of the world’s ocean and have long been considered the “wild west” of the ocean, given their lack of oversight and collective exploitation (Nature). The treaty sets forth a mechanism to establish marine protected areas, in which activities such as commercial fishing and oil gas drilling could be limited or prohibited (NPR). Establishing these areas will be critical for enabling the U.N. to reach its target of conserving 30% of the ocean by 2030 (Bloomberg). 

The treaty also requires environmental impact assessments to be conducted on potentially harmful activities in the ocean, and introduces regulations for countries and companies seeking to access and commercialize “marine genetic resources,” such as marine bacteria and algae that could be used in pharmaceuticals (Bloomberg, NPR). These new rules are expected to broaden the number of scientists and countries benefiting from scientific research in international waters, while spurring greater collaboration between nations. 

Once the treaty is formally adopted by delegates of the Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction and approved by the U.N. General Assembly, 60 nations must ratify the agreement for it to go into effect (Bloomberg). If ratified, the treaty is expected to mark the end of an era of unregulated exploitation of the high seas––a critical step for addressing biodiversity loss, climate change, and pollution (UN News).