Explained | What the new High Seas Treaty means for India, and the world Premium
The Hindu
India has a primarily nearshore fishing fleet and the new treaty could help regulate fishing beyond its EEZ.
The international ocean, the last frontier for uncivilised and uncontrolled human behaviour, is on the verge of being tamed. The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) treaty, also known as the ‘High Seas Treaty’, has been accepted in principle.
But why should we care?
Most of the earth’s surface is covered by ocean, and two-thirds of the ocean are considered “high seas”: areas of the ocean outside the jurisdiction of any country. The high seas are crucial to regulate many environmental processes that make the earth liveable for us. The high seas have also seen some of the worst illegal behaviour, from overfishing to blatant human rights abuses, all while being subject to land-based pollution (e.g. plastics and microplastics) and climate change.
Having a treaty to regulate all this is much needed, and the new treaty is expected to have the biggest global conservation and regulatory footprint (outside atmospheric and climate treaties).
Securing ‘Blue Economies’
A BBNJ treaty could not only have biodiversity impacts but also economic ones. Take the case of high seas around the continent of Africa. Since many African countries lack the capital and technological prowess to have their fishing fleets venture outside their Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ), European fleets have plundered those international oceans. If these European fleets had been bound by the laws of their home countries, it probably would not make economic sense for them to fish in those waters. India, with its primarily nearshore fishing fleet, is in a similar technological position to these African nations, especially with respect to Chinese and European fleets outside our EEZ.
Being able to distribute and regulate our national fishing effort within and outside our EEZ, alongside regulated international fishing effort in the high seas, could give India the sustainable fisheries that could secure our ‘Blue Economy’. Doing so would require several steps, starting with tracking the movements of fishing vessels. Although vessel-monitoring systems have been installed in many vessels that travel to the high seas, they are relatively easy to disable, allowing for the illegal movement of vessels as well as illegal operations. Requiring the use of such vessel-monitoring throughout international fishing operations could be a turning point – not only to secure fisheries but also for political stability.
