A historic agreement to safeguard the largely unregulated high seas has officially come into effect, marking a pivotal moment for ocean conservation. For decades, international waters – those beyond national jurisdictions – have operated as a “wild west” of fishing, largely free from limits. These areas, comprising 95% of the planet’s habitable marine volume, remain vastly unexplored, but are increasingly threatened by commercial exploitation.
The Need for Global Cooperation
The United Nations treaty, ratified by over 60 countries as of September 2025, establishes a framework for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in the open oceans. This agreement addresses a critical gap: previously, no international mechanism existed to create marine protected areas in the high seas. The treaty’s effectiveness hinges on collaboration, as evidenced by pioneering marine biologist Sylvia Earle’s statement: “This moment shows that cooperation at a global scale is possible.”
Implementation and Key Priorities
The treaty’s rules and oversight structures will be finalized at an inaugural conference in late 2026, meaning actual protected areas won’t be established until almost a year from now. Conservation efforts will initially focus on biodiversity hotspots such as the Sargasso Sea (a crucial eel breeding ground) and the Lost City hydrothermal vent system in the Atlantic, as well as underwater ridges in the Pacific that support whales, sharks, and other marine life.
Beyond fishing restrictions, the treaty will also establish a repository for sharing genetic resources from international waters – a potential source of new medicines and biotechnologies. This comes at a critical juncture: as fishing technology advances (including deep-sea trawling and targeting the twilight zone), overexploitation has become rampant, with regional fisheries failing to sustainably manage 56% of targeted stocks.
Why This Matters: Resilience and Climate
Protecting these areas is not just about biodiversity. Marine protected areas within national waters have demonstrated a positive impact on neighboring fisheries by providing spawning and growth habitats. The treaty directly supports the “30 by 30” initiative – conserving 30% of Earth’s surface by 2030 – a goal unattainable without high seas protection.
The ocean has absorbed 90% of excess heat from global warming, and ecosystems are under increasing stress. Protecting them from overfishing and pollution enhances their resilience. As Plymouth Marine Laboratory researcher Matt Frost puts it, “If you’re sick with three things at a time, if you remove two of them, you’re free to fight the other one.” Ocean ecosystems also play a key role in carbon sequestration, absorbing a quarter of climate-warming CO2.
Challenges Ahead: Enforcement and Ratification
Implementing the treaty faces hurdles. Mapping the ocean floor is incomplete – only 27% has been fully surveyed – and enforcement will be difficult. A significant proportion of existing marine protected areas in national waters are “paper parks” with little real protection. Though satellite imagery and AI can track illegal activity, the treaty’s effectiveness relies on UN member states denying port access to violators.
Currently, 83 nations have ratified the treaty, but key countries like the UK, US, Canada, and Australia have not. Conservation groups like Oceana emphasize that wider ratification is crucial: “The more countries that ratify it, the more powerful this treaty gets.”
Ultimately, the high seas treaty represents a landmark step toward responsible ocean management. Its success will depend on sustained international cooperation and enforcement, ensuring that these vital ecosystems are protected for future generations.
