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. Now the government can establish protected areas up to 200 nautical miles. – Now 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 must 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. Desired change The new law has long been wanted by the environmental movement. In an interview with news 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 the sea should be managed, that is the first thing they should do. Sea crisis People from all over the world are gathered in Lisbon this week to attend the sea conference. This is the second time it has been held. CRISIS: The UN Secretary-General today opened the UN Conference on the Sea in his hometown of Lisbon. He calls the situation at sea a crisis. Photo: Mary Altaffer / AP 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 life in the sea, 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. – There is now a broad understanding that by protecting the sea, we are acting to meet the climate crisis.
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Norway will establish an Marine Environment Act – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
