Following nearly two decades of fierce negotiations, the United Nations’ 193 Member States have finally agreed upon a landmark legally-binding marine biodiversity agreement that will forge a common wave of conservation covering two-thirds of the planet’s oceans.

While countries are responsible for the conservation and sustainable use of waterways under national jurisdiction, protection has now been extended to the high seas in a bid to save them from destructive trends such a pollution and unsustainable fishing activities.

Adopted by the Intergovernmental Conference on Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, the high seas treaty aims at taking stewardship of the ocean on behalf of present and future generations.

Providing cleaner oceans is a cornerstone of the treaty. Toxic chemicals and millions of tons of plastic waste are flooding into coastal ecosystems, killing or injuring fish, sea turtles, seabirds, and marine mammals, as well as making their way into the food chain and being consumed by humans.

More than 17 million metric tonnes of plastic entered the world’s ocean in 2021, making up to 85% of marine litter, and projections are expected to double or triple each year by 2040. According to estimates, by 2050, there could be more plastic in the sea than fish.

The treaty aims to strengthen resilience and contains provisions based on the ‘polluter-pays’ principle as well as a mechanism for disputes. Under the treaty, parties must assess potential environmental impacts of any planned activities beyond their jurisdictions.

“The ocean is the lifeblood of our planet, and today, you have pumped new life and hope to give the ocean a fighting chance,” said the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres on Monday.

“The new agreement is critical to addressing the threats facing the ocean and to the success of ocean-related goals and targets, including the 2030 Agenda.”

Some of the goals and targets include Sustainable Development Goal 14, which aims at, among other things, preventing and significantly reducing marine pollution of all kinds by 2025.

Protecting critical areas of the ocean could help build global resilience to climate change. Almost half the world’s oxygen comes from phytoplankton in the oceans. The high seas therefore absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, with estimates at around 30% of all carbon emissions, blunting the impact of climate change on land and sea alike.