On Thursday 22 May, ahead of the third United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice in June, more than fifty NGOs sent an open letter (https://aeur.eu/f/gyv ) to President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, calling for the presentation of an “ambitious (...) [and] binding” ‘European Ocean Pact’ (see EUROPE 13645/17).
The signatories recall the existence of the Blue Manifesto, published in October 2024, notably by BirdLife International and Seas At Risk (see EUROPE 13494/11).
In their letter, the NGOs express concern about the lack of ambition in the preliminary versions of the Pact, which is to be adopted on 4 June by the college of Commissioners (see EUROPE 13638/10).
According to the NGOs, these versions “fall short of the ambition (...) required to address the (...) urgency of ocean degradation”. They are calling for concrete, binding and adequately funded action: restoration of key marine ecosystems, support for low-impact activities and a ban on destructive practices such as industrial fishing and offshore oil and gas extraction. The NGOs believe that no activity should be authorised within marine protected areas (MPAs).
Commission project: https://aeur.eu/f/gz1 (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)