“The oceans are part of who we are,” says the fisheries commissioner at the international ocean conservation conference. The money is to be divided among “39 commitments”.
At the international marine protection conference “Our Ocean” in Panama City, the European Union pledged 816.5 million euros for the protection of the seas in 2023. The EU wants to “protect, revive and nurture” the oceans, according to a statement on Thursday. “The oceans are part of who we are and we are responsible for them together,” said EU Fisheries Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevicius.
With the funding, the EU is reaffirming “its strong commitment to international maritime policy,” Brussels said. The 816.5 million euros are therefore divided into “39 commitments”. For example, 320 million euros are for “marine research to protect the biological diversity of the seas and to deal with the effects of climate change on the oceans”.
Guterres: “Oceans have been under pressure for years”
Political leaders gathered at the conference on Thursday to discuss the myriad threats to the world’s oceans – from climate change and pollution to overfishing and resource depletion. Around 600 government representatives, business people, environmental activists and scientists are expected to attend the two-day “Our Ocean” conference in the Central American country. It discusses expanding marine protected areas, reducing stressors on the oceans and ensuring a sustainable “blue economy” – the equivalent of a green economy in relation to the oceans.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday called on the member states’ negotiators to conclude a “robust and ambitious” high-seas agreement. The international community has been discussing this for more than 15 years. “Our oceans have been under pressure for decades. We can no longer ignore the ocean emergency,” he said. The high seas, which are not governed by any country, make up more than 60 percent of the oceans and almost half of the planet’s surface.
Companies target natural resources
Launched in 2014, the conference “is key to maintaining the political will to protect the oceans,” said Courtney Farthing of the NGO Global Fishing Watch. The meeting comes at a time when multinational companies are eyeing the natural resources of the sea. These include so-called manganese nodules, which are deposited on the seabed and contain metals that are important for making batteries. Environmentalists warn that mining them would have devastating effects on deep-sea ecosystems.
The oceans cover three quarters of the earth’s surface and are home to 80 percent of all life on the planet. They provide food for more than three billion people and represent important trade routes.
(APA/AFP)