To improve ocean protection, Parliament calls on the EU to lead global ocean governance and biodiversity efforts.
Ahead of the upcoming climate and biodiversity conferences COP27 and COP15, Parliament has adopted a resolution on strengthening ocean governance and the protection of marine biodiversity with 468 votes to 53 votes and 34 abstentions.
MEPs call on the EU to be a leader in protecting, restoring and in raising awareness about the essential role that oceans play in maintaining a liveable planet for humans and animals. They remind that the good health of our oceans is also essential for the long-term sustainability of many activities such as fishing, tourism, research and shipping.
MEPs also underline the importance of oceans in the fight against climate change and for the full achievement of the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the Convention on Biological Diversity. In this context, they remind of Parliament’s call for the EU to push for an ambitious post-2020 global biodiversity framework at COP15 to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, including through legally binding global restoration and protection targets of at least 30% by 2030.
MEPs consider the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction for crucial. They are therefore disappointed that, in spite of progress, the Treaty of the High Seas was not adopted at the Fifth Intergovernmental Conference. MEPs call on the Commission and the Member States to urgently resume negotiations on the Treaty so that an international framework that is ambitious, effective and futureproof can be adopted as soon as possible.
Source – EU Commission