Stockholm (NordSIP) – As the third United Ocean Conference (UNOC3) reaches the halfway point in Nice, France, several participating nations have signalled their intention to implement better protective measures for their territorial waters.
On 9 June 2025 the UK government announced a three-month consultation on the banning of bottom trawling in 41 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) spanning 30,000 km2. Although the use of destructive fishing methods such as bottom trawling in MPAs may seem counterintuitive, it continues to be widespread and several European nations have been criticised for allowing the practice to go ahead. This has led to formal litigation by environmental NGOs against the governments of Denmark, Sweden, the Netherlands, France, Spain, Germany, and Italy. In April 2024 Greece became the first European country to announce a ban on bottom trawling in all its marine parks and protected areas to be implemented by 2026. In January 2025 the Swedish government also signalled its intention to amend legislation towards a future ban on bottom trawling in MPAs. Tanzania and Brazil also took the opportunity of UNOC3 to announce new MPAs.
High seas ‘Wild West’ warning
Although national governments can theoretically control fishing practices within their territorial waters, a key aim of UNOC3 was to push for more countries to ratify the treaty governing international waters. The UN-sponsored Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) agreement was adopted in June 2023 but requires a minimum of 60 countries to ratify it before it can be enforced. It is considered a crucial step towards the stated goal of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) to restore and protect 30% of the planet’s surface by 2030. 18 nations ratified the BBNJ on the first day of UNOC3, which brought the total up to 49 and raising hopes that the Nice event could eventually see the full ratification of the high seas treaty.
The BBNJ agreement aims to protect the high seas, which cover the area more than 200 nautical miles (Nm) from national coastlines that fall under no individual country’s jurisdiction. It aims to achieve the fair and equitable sharing of marine genetic resources, the implementation of international MPAs, and the sustainable use of marine biological diversity. While industrial overfishing is a core concern, the global appetite for minerals has brought deep sea mining to the fore. In April 2025 the United States president signed an executive order entitled Unleashing America’s Offshore Critical Minerals and Resources. In December 2024 Norway put its own deep sea mining plans on hold following a public backlash.
In his opening address to UNOC3 UN secretary-general António Guterres warned against the deep seas becoming ‘the Wild West.’ Guterres signalled that despite the obvious global benefits of protecting the ocean it may not be easy to achieve: “There is a tipping point approaching, beyond which recovery may become impossible and let us be clear, powerful interests are pushing us towards the brink. We are facing a hard battle against a clear enemy. Its name is greed. Greed that sows doubt, denies science, distorts truths, rewards corruption, and destroys life for profit.”
The European Union (EU) had formally ratified the BBNJ ahead of the start of UNOC3. EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen also announced plans to reflect the BBNJ within EU law as well as financial backing for the ratification and implementation of the treaty in all member states. Von der Leyen also introduced the UNOC3 audience to the new European Ocean Pact, a common strategy for the protection of the region’s marine environment, coastal communities, and blue economy.
UNOC3 continues until 13 June 2025.
