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The European Commission is pushing ahead with a new directive to bring the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement into EU law – a move Fishing Daily reports as an attempt to both show leadership ahead of the UN Ocean Conference in June 2025 and potentially avoid international embarrassment if Member States fall behind on ratification.

What is the BBNJ Agreement? 

Also known as the “Treaty of the High Seas,” the BBNJ Agreement commits signatories to establish marine protected areas, conduct environmental impact assessments in international waters and share benefits from marine genetic resources.

Although the Commission claims EU law is already aligned with significant parts of the BBNJ, the new directive is designed to close gaps and impose obligations across all Member States. In doing so, the directive upholds the EU’s 30×30 biodiversity goal-protecting 30% of the ocean by 2030 and aligns with the Kurming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

The proposal includes provisions for marine genetic resource sharing, an area of growing commercial and geopolitical tension. EU researchers would be supported in cross-border collaboration, but the directive hints at the need for compliance with benefit-sharing frameworks such as the upcoming COP16 Cali Fund.

Political motivations called into question 

Fishing Daily reports that the timing of the proposal, just over a year before the High Seas Treaty is expected to enter into force, has raised questions. With only 89 countries signed and fewer than 60 ratifications in place, the Commission is moving unilaterally to legislate before the international community has fully committed. Additionally, how enforcement will function in international waters is little understood, and some are reportedly asking whether the EU is overstretching by moving ahead of global consensus.

Next steps 

The Commission insists the administrative burden will be kept to a minimum and that the directive will support “good governance and ocean sustainability” under the forthcoming European Ocean Part.

The BBNJ Agreement will formally enter into force 120 days after 60 nations ratify the treaty. The EU says it is committed to ratifying before the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, June 2025, but whether other global powers follow suit remains to be seen.