What is the Lisbon Declaration 2022?

The ocean – our biggest ally against climate change – is in serious trouble. The UN Ocean Conference (27 June to 1 July), co-hosted by Portugal and Kenya, is meant to boost collective efforts and find science-based solutions to effectively address the challenges that the ocean is facing.

On 1st July 2022, all 198 countries of the UN unanimously adopted the Lisbon Declaration on ocean conservation. The conference recognised that smaller countries, especially island nations need help with capacity building, with the changing nature of oceans and frequency of disasters.

A primary area of focus at the conference was marine pollution. It includes the following aspects -
Nutrient Pollution (too many nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous are added to water bodies and can subsequently run off into the ocean)
Untreated Wastewater (water that is discharged without treating and directly contributes to increase of diarrhoeal diseases like cholera, typhoid and rotavirus)
Solid waste discharges (harms natural ecosystems, transports chemical pollutants and threatens aquatic life…especially microplastics)
Hazardous Substances (Like HCB, Lindane or DDT that do not occur naturally in marine environments and have been introduced by human intervention)
Emissions from the maritime industry like shipwrecks
Anthropogenic underwater noise ( like military sonar or seismic surveys)

Other points of focus at the conference included creating sustainable ocean based economies and preserving coastal communities. Nations expressed regret for not being able to achieve their 2020 targets and renewed their commitments.

Members also recognised the importance of women in building sustainable ocean-based economies in accordance with the UN sustainable development goal 14.

The 5th round of negotiations of the treaty which aims to protect biodiversity in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction, which lie outside the 200-mile (322-kilometer) exclusive economic zones of countries, will happen from August 15-26, 2022 in New York.

“Restoring harmony with nature through a healthy, productive, sustainable and resilient ocean is critical for our planet, our lives and our future,” the document read.