The Biodiversity Act provides an opportunity for the protection of nature on the seabed and in the water column within the Norwegian territorial boundary 12 nautical miles. Norway manages sea areas up to 200 nautical miles.
It has not been possible to create protected areas outside the Norwegian territorial hamlet.
The new Marine Environment Act changes this. The government can now establish protected areas up to 200 nautical miles.
– Once we have the law in place, we can establish protection in everything from the sea Norway manages, says Minister of Climate and Environment Espen Barth Eide.
He is sitting on a boat in Lisbon. As Minister of Climate and the Environment, he is the head of delegation for Norway at the UN Conference on the Sea.
– This is closely linked to what Norway and the UN want. We need to become better at managing the sea in a sustainable way.
More than 20 heads of state and government, thousands of young people, business leaders, researchers and civil society representatives will attend the conference. The goal is to present new, bold and innovative solutions to effectively meet the challenges facing the sea.
The Minister of Fisheries and Marine Affairs, Bjørnar Skjæran, tells NRK that the groundbreaking work of making business plans has begun.
– Norway has a lot to contribute to marine management. We have managed to find a good balance between sustainable use and protection. For example, around half of our sea areas are already protected today through measures in the fisheries management, says Skjæran.
Desired change
The new law has long been wanted by the environmental movement. In an interview with NRK before the marine conference, Halvard Haga Raavand, political adviser at Greenpeace, said that the first thing the government should do is change the Biodiversity Act.
– If Norway is to travel there with a good picture of how to manage the sea, the first thing they should do.
NRK
explains
How is the sea?
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The sea and climate
The ocean absorbs about a quarter of all the CO2 humans emit into the atmosphere. Without this, the temperature would have already risen more than two degrees since pre-industrial times.
But the uptake of CO2 makes the ocean more acidic. It can damage the ecosystems of the ocean. Ocean acidification could have a major effect on marine ecosystems if emissions continue as they do now.
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The sea and pH
The pH in the sea surface is the lowest in 26,000 years. As the pH of the ocean drops, so does the ocean’s capacity to absorb CO₂ from the atmosphere.
About 23 percent of the annual man-made emissions of CO₂ are absorbed by the ocean. It makes the sea more acidic. This threatens wildlife and ecosystems.
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The sea and the economy
The marine economy is among the fastest growing in the world, and provides many benefits to many sectors that have great economic value, such as fisheries, transport, biotechnology and energy production and more.
Globally, the market value of marine and coastal resources and industries is estimated at $ 3 trillion each year, or about 5 percent of global gross domestic product.
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the sea and pollution
Every year, around 11 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean, costing the world around $ 12 billion in economic costs, which include cleanup work, losses in the fishing industry and other industries.
About 80 percent of maritime and coastal pollution comes from land, and includes agricultural runoff, pesticides, plastics and untreated sewage.
89 percent of plastic waste found on the seabed is disposable plastic, such as plastic bags. More than 800 species are affected by marine plastic, through ingestion, entanglement and habitat change. Every year, more than one million seabirds and 100,000 mammals are killed by plastic debris.
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The sea and heating
In 2021, sea temperatures were the highest recorded. They exceeded 2020 by somewhere between 9 and 14 zettajoules.
One-half zettajoule is roughly equivalent to the annual energy consumption worldwide.
The heat penetrates deeper and deeper into the sea. Large parts of the world’s oceans experienced at least one strong heat wave during last year.
Coral reefs are particularly vulnerable. It is expected that 70-80 percent of them will disappear with a warming of 1.5 degrees. At 2 degrees, over 99 percent will disappear.
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The sea is rising
The sea is rising faster than ever. The last eight years at 4.5 millimeters per year. Sea level rise is mainly due to meltwater from ice in the Arctic and from glaciers.
The world’s glaciers have averaged 33.5 meters lower since 1950. 76 percent of this ice has disappeared since 1980.
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– Sea crisis
People from all over the world are gathering in Lisbon this week to attend the ocean conference. This is the second time it has been held.
CRISIS: The UN Secretary-General today opened the UN Maritime Conference in his hometown of Lisbon. He calls the situation at sea a crisis.
Photo: Mary Altaffer / AP
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In the opening speech, UN Secretary-General António Guterres calls it a maritime crisis.
–The sea connected us all. Today we are facing what I would call an ocean crisis.
Sea levels are rising, the sea is becoming more acidic, coral reefs are fading, and millions of tonnes of plastic end up in the sea every year.
– It kills marine life and destroys communities that depend on fishing and tourism.
The last time the UN held a sea conference was five years ago. Guterres says that great progress has been made since then.
– I am happy to say that there has been progress in making legally binding agreements for the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity.
– It is now widely understood that by protecting the sea, we are acting to meet the climate crisis.
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