THE CONTEXT: The third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC-3), co-hosted by France and Costa Rica at Nice in June 2025, tried to “do for the seas what Paris-2015 did for climate” by accelerating action towards Sustainable Development Goal-14 (Life Below Water). Its headline outcome was a surge of ratifications for the 2023 “Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement” or High Seas Treaty: 56 of the 60 instruments needed were deposited, triggering expectations that the treaty will enter into force by early 2026.
THE BACKGROUND:
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- Global commons dilemma: 64 % of ocean area lies beyond national jurisdiction; Garrett Hardin’s “tragedy of the commons” and the “common heritage of humankind” principle under Article 136 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provide the normative backdrop.
- Regime gap: UNCLOS governs navigation and fisheries but left biodiversity conservation, marine genetic resources (MGRs) and benefit-sharing largely to soft law.
- Policy momentum: The 2022 Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework’s “30 × 30” pledge (30 % land & sea protection by 2030) forced a legally binding mechanism for the high seas.
WHAT IS THE BBNJ AGREEMENT? (TECHNICAL DETAILS & SPECIFICATIONS)
| Pillar | Key provisions | Salient metrics |
|---|---|---|
| Area-based management tools & Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) | Empowers COP to designate MPAs by three-quarter majority; integrates cumulative-impact thresholds | Goal ≈ 30 % high seas under MPAs by 2030 |
| Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) | Mandatory screening, scoping, consultation, monitoring for activities with “more than minor or transitory” harm | EIAs must consider climate, cumulative and socio-cultural impacts |
| Marine Genetic Resources & Benefit-Sharing | Access notification + multilateral benefit-sharing fund; non-monetary (data, samples) and monetary (0.1–1 % sales royalty) contributions | Review every 5 years; adaptive rates |
| Capacity-building & Technology Transfer | Dedicated committee, finance mechanism and clearing-house platform | ≥70 % funding earmarked for developing states |
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- Trigger for entry into force: 60 ratifications → 120-day clock → first Conference of Parties (COP-1) expected late-2026.
- Institutional design: Secretariat, Scientific & Technical Body, Compliance Committee; decisions strive for consensus, with fallback voting thresholds.
KEY OUTCOMES FROM UNOC-3:
1. Ratification wave: 56 parties (up from 32 in February 2025); India pledged “early ratification” but awaits parliamentary scrutiny of overlap with Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and Biological Diversity Act 2002.
2. Voluntary finance & action pledges
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- European Commission: €1 billion for conservation, sustainable fishing and ocean science.
- French Polynesia: World’s largest MPA across its entire 5 million km² EEZ.
- Germany: €100 million programme to clear WWII munitions in the Baltic & North Seas.
- New Zealand, Italy, Spain and others announced region-specific governance, surveillance and MPA targets.
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3. Coalitions launched: High Ambition Coalition for a Quiet Ocean (37 states) to curb underwater noise; push for moratorium on commercial deep-sea mining gained 37 supporters.
DRIVERS OF THE TREATY MOMENTUM
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- Unsustainable fisheries (34 % stocks over-exploited).
- Climate-induced deoxygenation and acidification.
- Emerging industries: deep-sea mining, marine biotechnology.
- Public mobilisation post “Seaspiracy”-type documentaries and youth climate litigation.
INDIAN CONTEXT
| Area | Current instruments | Gaps vis-à-vis BBNJ |
|---|---|---|
| Conservation | Coastal Regulation Zone, National Marine Turtle Action Plan, AMRUT-Reef pilots | No legal basis for MPAs beyond EEZ; limited surveillance of Area-Based Measures |
| Blue Economy | Draft “Blue Economy Policy (2021)”, Deep Ocean Mission, Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana | Benefit-sharing guidelines for MGRs outside EEZ undefined |
| Research | National Institute of Ocean Technology, INCOIS, Coastal Research Vessels | Need interoperable data portals to comply with clearinghouse for MGRs |
GLOBAL BEST PRACTICES:
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- European Union Mission ‘Restore our Ocean & Waters’ leverages Horizon Europe funds and citizen science for basin-wide restoration.
- Pacific small-island states embed traditional knowledge in MPA zoning (e.g., Palau’s national sanctuary).
- Norway-Iceland ‘Fisheries-Cloud’ real-time catch quota monitoring showcases data-driven enforcement.
THE ISSUES:
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- Benefit-sharing gridlock: Divergence over derivative products, valuation metrics for non-monetary benefits, and temporal scope of royalties.
- Institutional overlap: Potential turf friction with International Seabed Authority, Regional Fisheries Management Organisations and World Trade Organization subsidy disciplines.
- Compliance & Enforcement: High seas are vast; Automatic Identification System (AIS) gaps, “dark fleets,” and limited satellite coverage hamper monitoring.
- Finance & Technology Transfer: No assessed contributions; relies on voluntary funding, risking North–South trust deficit.
- Equity Concerns: Developing states fear “conservation locks out development,” citing digital sequence information (DSI) parallels in terrestrial ABS (Access-Benefit Sharing).
- Deep-Sea Mining Moratorium: Non-binding coalition; industry argues for supply-chain critical minerals; environmentalists demand precautionary principle.
THE WAY FORWARD:
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- Legislative integration: Enact a High Seas (Participation and Compliance) Bill that references UNCLOS Articles 87 & 89, providing clear jurisdictional triggers for enforcement on Indian-flagged vessels.
- Regional Diplomacy: Leverage Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) to craft a BBNJ capacity-sharing pool for hydro-acoustic data, bridging North–South technology divides and enhancing collective surveillance.
- Digital Public Infrastructure for Oceans (DPI-O): Build an open-source platform integrating INCOIS data, AIS feeds and machine-learning-based vessel detection for real-time compliance dashboards accessible to fisher cooperatives.
- Deep-Sea Mining Precaution – Adopt a “no-data, no-dig” moratorium until independent cumulative-impact studies are peer-reviewed, position India as a leader in sustainable polymetallic nodule research under ISA exploration licences.
- Blue Carbon Markets: Pursue mangrove and seagrass restoration projects verified under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, monetising carbon credits to fund high-seas research cruises.
- Adaptive Governance – Establish an inter-ministerial National Ocean Commons Council chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for policy coherence across shipping, environment, fisheries and defence portfolios.
THE CONCLUSION:
The UNOC-3 outcomes and the near-entry-into-force of the High Seas Treaty mark an inflection point in ocean governance. For India, early ratification—coupled with coherent domestic reforms—can align national Blue Economy ambitions with global sustainability goals, reinforcing its image as a responsible maritime power.
UPSC PAST YEAR QUESTION:
Q. Critically evaluate the various resources of the oceans which can be harnessed to meet the resource crisis in the world. 2014
MAINS PRACTICE QUESTION:
Q. The High Seas Treaty heralds a paradigm shift from ‘freedom of the seas’ to ‘responsibility for the seas. Discuss how the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Agreement seeks to address gaps in ocean governance.
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