Sixty countries have ratified the new High Seas Treaty, allowing it to become legally binding starting next January.
The treaty, the result of more than twenty years of international negotiations, introduces rules for the protection and sustainable use of biodiversity in international waters, areas previously beyond the control of individual nations. Currently, only 1% of international waters are protected. With this treaty, the goal is to extend protection to 30% of the global ocean by 2030. The agreement is hailed as a milestone in ocean governance, setting shared and binding rules where “free exploitation” had prevailed until now.
