The member countries of the UN adopted today the first international treaty for protection of the high seas, an agreement of capital importance to address the dangers that threaten the oceans and humanity.

“The agreement was adopted” said the president of the UN conference to applause Rena Lee, after its unanimous approval.

“The ocean is the basic life force of our planet. Today you breathed new life and hope into the oceans to have a fighting chance” for their rescue, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres commented, hailing this “historic success”.

Despite the adoption of the agreement, Russia kept a “distance” calling certain parts of the text “absolutely unacceptable”.

In March, after 15 years of discussions – four of which were formal negotiations – the member countries finally managed to reach an agreement. It was preceded by two weeks of marathon negotiations, the third and “last” in a year. The text of the treaty was then temporarily “frozen” until it passed through the legal services and was translated to be available in all six official UN languages.

Marine ecosystems are threatened by climate change, pollution and overfishing. Scientists have proven how important it is to protect the oceans with their biodiversity, as they provide half of the oxygen we breathe and limit global warming by absorbing a significant part of the CO2 emitted by human activities.

The high seas begin where states’ Exclusive Economic Zones end, extending 200 nautical miles (the maximum) from the coast, and therefore not under the jurisdiction of any country. Although it represents almost half the planet and 60% of the oceans, it has been neglected in the fight to protect the environment, since the burden has fallen on coastal zones and some iconic species.

One of the main provisions of the new treaty is the creation of protected marine zones in international waters.

Today, only 1% of the open sea is protected. But in December, in Montreal, all the countries of the planet pledged to protect, by 2030, 30% of the Earth’s land and oceans.

With the adoption of the agreement, “the race to ratify it begins and it is within our means to aim to protect at least 30% of the oceans by 2030,” commented Chris Thorne, a spokesman for Greenpeace.

The new treaty “on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity of areas not subject to national jurisdictions”, also introduces the obligation to carry out studies on the environmental impact of activities on the high seas. The text does not say what these are – they could be anything from fishing to transport but also potentially controversial activities such as undersea mining or geoengineering, a technology aimed at limiting warming.

The principle of profit-sharing from marine genetic resources harvested on the high seas is also established. Developing countries, which do not have the means to finance expensive expeditions and research, will share these marine resources “equally”, whether it is access to scientific data or benefits from the commercialization of these resources – which belong to no one. Pharmaceutical and cosmetic companies hope that from these resources they will derive “miracle” molecules.

The text will be put up for signature by UN countries on September 20, when dozens of heads of state and government will be in New York for the UN General Assembly. Non-governmental organizations estimate that it will not be difficult to find the 60 signatures needed for the treaty to enter into force, given that the coalition to promote it, led by the EU, already consists of some fifty countries, including Japan, Chile, India and Mexico.