Environment. High seas, marine protected areas... What was the outcome of the oceans summit in Nice?

"Nice has won the ocean challenge," Olivier Poivre d'Arvor declared. The United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC-3) , for which he was France's special envoy and conductor, concludes this Friday in Nice (Alpes-Maritimes). Never before has such an event attracted so many political leaders: 175 member states represented, 64 heads of state and government, 28 heads of international organizations, and 115 ministers. The Whale, an area reserved for the general public, saw "more than 100,000 people" pass through, according to the Élysée Palace.

This exceptional participation is coupled with real progress for the protection of the seas. Starting with the High Seas Treaty. While the 60 ratifications were not obtained during the week in Nice, there are now 55. The missing ratifications will take place by September at the latest, paving the way for the treaty to enter into force in January 2026. "Bravo to French diplomacy, it's a nice surprise," said André Abreu, Director of International Affairs at the Tara Ocean Foundation.

Where ocean protection associations are more circumspect, even disappointed, is on the issue of marine protected areas (MPAs). The announcements made in Nice by 14 countries allow for an increase from 8% to 12% of MPAs in the exclusive economic zones of all states in the world. French Polynesia announced the creation of the world's largest MPA, covering an area of ​​4.55 million km2, including 900,000 km2 where all activity is prohibited.

NGOs, however, denounce the weakness of France's announcements, with a limitation on bottom trawling in only 4% of France's territorial waters (compared to 0.1% previously). François Chartier, oceans campaigner at Greenpeace France, speaks of a "missed opportunity for Emmanuel Macron , who presents himself as a champion of the oceans."

Another disappointment is the fact that only five countries have joined the coalition for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, which has grown from 32 to just 37 countries, out of the 169 member states of the International Seabed Authority (ISA). "A mining code must be unanimously approved, and with 37 countries, we're going to block it," Olivier Poivre d'Arvor nevertheless asserted, ahead of the next ISA meeting scheduled for July.

On waste reduction, 96 countries have signed the declaration of intent to reduce plastic production , more than half of the 170 countries involved since 2022 in the negotiations for a treaty, which are due to resume in August in Geneva. Finally, while fossil fuels, responsible for global warming and ocean acidification, were not addressed during this UN meeting, they will be on the agenda of the next COP on climate, in November in Belém, Brazil.