The ocean is under siege—and greed is to blame.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres last week urged world leaders and grassroots groups to confront the powerful interests driving marine destruction, from illegal fishing and plastic pollution to the accelerating impacts of climate change.
Guterres’ stark assessment came during a press conference on the second day of the UN ocean summit, known as UNOC3, where hundreds of government leaders, scientists and civil society groups are gathered on France’s Côte d’Azur. Their mission: to confront the escalating emergency facing the world’s oceans.
“We are in Nice on a mission–save the ocean, to save our future,” the Secretary-General said, and warned that a tipping point is fast-approaching “beyond which recovery may become impossible.”
The “clear enemy” that is pushing our oceans towards the brink is greed.
According to the UN chief, greed sows doubt, denies science, distorts truth, rewards corruption and destroys life for profit. “We cannot let greed dictate the fate of our planet,” he said.
Calling on all stakeholders to assume their responsibility in pushing back against these profit-hungry forces, the Secretary-General said: “That is why we are here this week: to stand in solidarity against those forces and reclaim what belongs to us all.”UN News
He cited four priorities for governments, business leaders, fishers and scientists, saying “everyone has a responsibility and a vital role to play.”
These are the transformation of ocean harvesting, tackling plastic pollution, fighting climate change at sea and enforcing the High Seas Treaty.
Calling for a grand global coalition of governments, business leaders, fishers, scientists, the Secretary-General urged everyone to step forward with decisive commitments and tangible funding.
“The ocean has given us so much. It is time we returned the favor.” Responding to questions at a press conference, Guterres stressed another critical issue: the fight against deep-sea mining.
Reiterating his warning from the opening day of the conference that the deep ocean must not become a “Wild West” of unregulated exploitation, he voiced strong backing for the ongoing work of the International Seabed Authority in addressing this growing concern. UN News
