The Biggest Conservation Commitment in the World
100 countries have signed the High Seas Biodiversity Treaty but so far only 21 have ratified it. At least 60 ratifications are required before it will enter into effect.More ratifications are expected ahead of the 2025 United Nations Ocean Conference being held in France in June.This week, the European Commission committed €40 million ($45 million) to support partner countries in their efforts to preserve and sustainably manage marine biodiversity areas and swiftly ratify the High Seas Biodiversity Treaty.Also this week, researchers from GEOMAR called for areas with fine-grained sediments, which
Underwater Sabotage: A Baltic Sea Timeline
Finland and Germany and that it had eventually received confirmation that the cable was damaged even as data traffic continued to flow.The incident marked the third time in just a few months that the C-Lion1 cable was damaged, after it was completely severed in November and December of 2024.The European Commission said it will spend almost a billion euros to boost surveillance of cables and establish a fleet of emergency repair vessels.JANUARY 2025: SWEDEN-LATVIA TELECOM CABLEAn undersea fiber optic cable connecting the west coast of Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland malfunctioned on January
Baltic States Switch from Russian to European Power Grid
The Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania completed a switch from Russia's electricity grid to the EU's system on Sunday, severing Soviet-era ties amid heightened security after the suspected sabotage of several subsea cables and pipelines.European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed the move, years in the planning, as marking a new era of freedom for the region, in a speech at a ceremony in Vilnius alongside the leaders of the three countries and the Polish president."These chains of power lines linking you to hostile neighbours will be a thing of the past,"
EU Calls for Input to European Oceans Pact
The European Commission has launched a call for evidence to shape the European Oceans Pact, a political initiative that aims to promote sustainable ocean management.The pact was announced by President von der Leyen in her political guidelines for the next European Commission (2024-2029).The pact aims to:• Maintain a healthy, resilient, and productive ocean.• Promote a sustainable and competitive blue economy, including fisheries and aquaculture.• Work towards a comprehensive agenda for marine knowledge, research and innovation, and investment. The call for evidence will run until
EU Improves Shark Trade Monitoring
The European Commission is actively following up to the European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) 'Stop finning – Stop the trade,' which asked the Commission for action to end international trade of loose shark fins.From January 2025, the Commission will step up monitoring of shark product trade thanks to 13 new tariff codes for sharks and their fins. These codes will enable the tracking of the most traded shark species, including the blue shark and shortfin mako. The Commission will closely monitor import and export data based on these new codes, and the data will be made available to
Russia Eyed for Subsea Cable Cuts
yet, that it is sabotage."Moscow has repeatedly denied sabotaging European infrastructure and says such claims are fabricated to damage Russian interests through an information war waged by the West. Two European sources said Tuesday's statement was not a direct response to the cable cuts.European Commission Vice President Josep Borrell struck a more cautious tone, saying it was too early to point fingers."It would be irresponsible from my side to attribute this, let's say incident or accident or whatever you want to call it, to anyone," he told a press conference in Brussels.One
Technip Energies and Partners to Develop Reusable Floating Wind Anchors
a tension line system, all while minimizing the impact on the marine environment in real offshore conditions.The PAREF project will provide the anchoring system for the NextFloat project.To remind, in 2022, Technip Energies, X1 Wind, and a consortium of 10 international entities were chosen by the European Commission to deliver the NextFloat project.Technip Energies, X1 Wind, Partners to Deliver Important Floating Wind ProjectThe integrated system includes X1 Wind's floating wind technology, featuring a lighter floater design with a reduced steel requirement, plus a compact mooring system minimizing
EU Should Upgrade Submarine Cable Infrastructure with State Aid, Paper Says
Europe should take measures to build or upgrade its submarine cable infrastructure and with state aid if necessary, according to a European Commission proposal, underscoring concerns about vulnerabilities exposed by the damage on two Baltic Sea telecoms cables last year.Submarine cable infrastructures, which form the backbone of the internet by carrying more than 97% of the world's data traffic, have become the latest flashpoint among countries amid rising geopolitical uncertainties and conflicts.Such concerns have prompted the EU executive to come up with a roadmap including measures to protect
EXPLAINER-Why Does Norway Want to Mine the Seabed?
issue are vital for Oslo's plans, some analysts have said.Norway is encouraged by EU ambitions to diversify imports of critical minerals and to boost local production. However, the European Parliament has also called on member-states to support a global moratorium on seabed mining. The European Commission has been also advocating for a deep-sea mining moratorium until more is known about the risks.HOW DO YOU MINE MINERALS FROM THE SEABED?There is no commercially available technology to produce seabed minerals, though some machines have been built to test production elsewhere in the world.Researchers
February 2025
