Instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of BBNJ                             

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Context: The United Nations is negotiating an international legally binding “instrument” to bring marine areas beyond national jurisdiction under common global management and monitoring.

More about news:

• The fourth meeting of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC-4) is convening under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to conclude a draft of the instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, also referred to as BBNJ.
• BBNJ encompasses the high seas, beyond the exclusive economic zones or national waters of countries, these areas account for almost half of the Earth’s surface and are hardly regulated.
  • Marine Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction (ABNJ), commonly called the high seas, are those areas of ocean for which no one nation has sole responsibility for management.
• This new agreement on BBJN has been under negotiation for the last 20 years. The current meeting is expected to finalise the draft for signing.
• The negotiated agreement has five aspects:
  • environmental impact assessments for activities taken up on high seas
  • conservation of marine genetic resources and
  • capacity building
  • technology transfer
  • cross-cutting issues such as institutional structure and financial support.
• IGC-4 opened discussions revolves around four elements related to EIAs:
  • Thresholds and criteria of the ecosystems
  • the need for separate EIA considerations for marine areas identified as ecologically or biologically significant or vulnerable
  • public notification and consultation and
  • decision making

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/wildlife-biodiversity/20-years-of-talks-later-half-the-earth-s-surface-area-to-have-binding-environment-treaty-81986