What we know about the new High Seas Treaty

Abstract

The new ‘High Seas Treaty’ adopted by the United Nations on June 19, 2023, leaves a lot open to question but does establish several historic benchmarks for protecting the high seas, setting the stage for further scientific exploration and paving the way for more effective marine conservation. This Comment describes what we know and do not know about the Treaty at this point. We know that the Treaty is about resources, equity, conservation, and diversity. What we are lacking are more specifics about how the Treaty would be implemented in practice. Such specifics are passed on to future working groups and a Conference of Parties.