UN Ocean Treaty Talks Collapse: "Glacial Pace"; Endless Obfuscation & Delay By Multiple States

[hatrack]

UN member states have failed to agree on a treaty to protect the high seas from exploitation, with scientists, environmentalists and conservation organisations blaming states that were “dragging their feet” for the “glacial pace” of talks.

The longer the negotiations took, the more wildlife would be lost from the ocean, they warned, urging ministers and heads of state to work together with the president of the UN high seas conference to speed up a further round of negotiations to close a “governance vacuum” on the high seas. Most of the ocean lies outside the exclusive economic zones controlled by individual states. Of this 64% of the high seas that lie beyond territorial limits, only 1.2% is now protected.

One scientist described the treaty as the most significant ocean protection agreement in four decades. Known as the BBNJ (biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction) ocean treaty, its aim is to create a legal framework for establishing vast marine protected areas to prevent loss of wildlife, oversee industrial fishing, and share out the “genetic resources” of the sea.

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Will McCallum, head of oceans at Greenpeace, who attended last week’s talks, said: “If the high-ambition countries are serious about bringing the treaty to a close they need to work with President Rena Lee to address the painfully slow progress made in the last two weeks.” McCallum criticised the “glacial pace” of talks and said negotiators spent “hours and hours” on non-contentious sentences. “The majority of parties want to conclude by 2022,” he said. “But the longer it continues, the weaker it is going to get.”

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https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/mar/21/un-ocean-treaty-summit-collapses-as-states-accused-of-dragging-out-talks

[2naSalit]

1. Most of our species...

Won't accept or DO anything until forced to act out of survival instinct. That means they won't take preventative action but will only respond to events threatening them directly and immediately like fleeing from a flash flood.

[Random Boomer]

2. Expected behavior

We can be very clever in manipulating our environment and making all kinds of tools and toys, but those behaviors are not related to wisdom and foresight at a global level.

The larger the groups we live in, the more unwieldy they become and the harder they are to govern in thoughtful ways. The wonder is that any of us manage to recognize the danger as we're circling the drain. It would probably be more pleasant to remain unaware, since either way we're doomed.