Paris Agreement for the Ocean

Although the focus of #365ofgoodWR is Waterloo Region, occasionally I will highlight good things happening globally. Today is one of those times.
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In 2018, after more than ten years of debate, 140 nations agreed to begin negotiations on a historic “Paris Agreement for the Ocean,” which is an international treaty that strives to protect life in the high seas. 

The high seas are international waters where no country has jurisdiction, and they cover almost half of the planet. These seas are teeming with life and they produce oxygen as well as help regulate the global climate.​ The treaty sends a "strong message of support for the high seas," according to a statement by the High Seas Alliance.

The hope is to have a treaty in place by the middle of 2020. Until then, over 140 countries are negotiating the details under the Law of the Sea Convention. This agreement would have "the authority to create large marine protected areas in the high seas as ocean scientists have long called for." 

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