Camille Naredo

Children spend time at the breakwater near a fishing village in Davao City on May 10, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File

Children spend time at the breakwater near a fishing village in Davao City on May 10, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News

Article (news)

Davao City

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1749398193533EMBED_20220510-davao-dailies-GC-9.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Children spend time at the breakwater near a fishing village in Davao City on May 10, 2022. George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">Children spend time at the breakwater near a fishing village in Davao City on May 10, 2022. <em>George Calvelo, ABS-CBN News/File</em></span></span></span></div><p>NICE, France -- World leaders arrive in the French Riviera on Sunday ahead of a high-level summit on ocean conservation, as nations face pressure to adopt tougher stances on overfishing, pollution and marine protection.</p><p>The United Nations has sounded the alarm over an oceans &quot;emergency&quot; and leaders gathering in Nice will be called to commit money and stronger protections for the seas.</p><p>The UN Ocean Conference, starting Monday, seeks to turn a corner as nations feud over deep-sea mining, plastic litter and exploitative fishing, against a backdrop of wider geopolitical tensions.</p><p>&quot;We have a duty to mobilize, because the science is clear and the facts are there,&quot; said French President Emmanuel Macron in Monaco on Sunday, where he attended a pre-conference event on ocean finance.</p><p>Some 60 heads of state and government are expected in Nice, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Argentine counterpart Javier Milei.</p><p>&quot;The planet can no longer tolerate broken promises,&quot; said Lula on Sunday.</p><p>&quot;Either we act, or the planet is in danger.&quot;</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/2/6/climate-change-what-the-latest-science-is-telling-us-as-the-planet-hits-warming-records-2025">READ: What the latest science is telling us as the planet hits warming records</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>- &#x27;No excuses&#x27; -</strong></div><p>Later Sunday, Macron was to arrive in Nice from Monaco and tour the conference venue, made to look like the cavernous belly of a whale.</p><p>In the evening, he was to host leaders for a dinner of Mediterranean fish.</p><p>France has deployed 5,000 police to Nice for the five-day summit where scientists, business leaders and environmental activists were also to attend in big numbers.</p><p>A strong turnout was expected from Pacific Island nations, whose delegations will urge financial aid to combat the rising seas, marine trash and plunder of fish stocks.</p><p>The United States under President Donald Trump -- whose recent push to fast-track seabed mining in international waters sparked global outrage -- was not expected to send a delegation.</p><p>Conservationists have warned the summit -- which will not produce a legally binding agreement -- risks being a talkfest unless leaders come up with concrete proposals to restore marine health.</p><p>On Saturday, Macron said France would restrict bottom trawling -- a destructive fishing method that indiscriminately scrapes the ocean floor -- in some of its marine protected areas.</p><p>Britain also said it would announce plans looking to extend a ban on bottom trawling to more than half of protected English seas.</p><p>Environmental groups said such steps were good but do not go far enough.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/weather-traffic/2025/3/20/record-numbers-forced-to-flee-climate-disasters-un-1131">READ: Record numbers forced to flee climate disasters -- UN</a></div><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2025/6/4/could-japan-s-new-ocean-safe-invention-be-the-future-of-plastics-1508">READ: Could Japan&#x27;s new ocean-safe invention be the future of plastics?</a></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>- Pay up -</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZpQI-4h7R-k?autoplay=1&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><p>Nations will also face calls to cough up the missing finance to protect 30 percent of the world&#x27;s oceans by 2030, a target agreed by nearly 200 countries in 2022.</p><p>&quot;We&#x27;ve created this sort of myth that governments don&#x27;t have money for ocean conservation,&quot; Brian O&#x27;Donnell, director of Campaign for Nature, told reporters.</p><p>&quot;There is money. There is not political will,&quot; he said.</p><p>So far, only around eight percent of oceans are designated marine conservation zones and even less are considered truly protected.</p><p>Greenpeace says at this rate, it could take another 82 years to reach the 30 percent goal.</p><p>In a boost this week, Samoa declared 30 percent of its national waters under protection with the creation of nine new marine parks.</p><p>Conservationists hope others at the summit follow suit.</p><p>&quot;All eyes should be on the many Pacific leaders attending.... Their ambition and dedication to ocean protection can serve as inspiration to all countries,&quot; said Kevin Chand from the nonprofit group Pristine Seas.</p><p>Another summit priority will be inching towards the numbers required to ratify a global treaty on harmful fishing subsidies, and another on protecting the high seas beyond national control.</p><p>France is also spearheading a push in Nice to build support for a moratorium on deep-sea mining ahead of a closely-watched meeting of the International Seabed Authority in July. -- <strong>Nick PERRY, Antoine AGASSE and Fanny CARRIER</strong></p><div><strong>© Agence France-Presse</strong></div>

<p>World leaders arrive in the French Riviera on Sunday ahead of a high-level summit on ocean conservation, as nations face pressure to adopt tougher stances on overfishing, pollution and marine protection.</p>

World leaders arrive in the French Riviera on Sunday ahead of a high-level summit on ocean conservation, as nations face pressure to adopt tougher stances on overfishing, pollution and marine protection.

World leaders urged to step up for overexploited oceans

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World leaders urged to step up for overexploited oceans

Agence France-Presse

Published June 09, 2025 12:15 AM PHT

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Updated June 09, 2025 12:38 AM PHT

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oceans

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UN Ocean Conference

Emmanuel Macron

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