Marine Expert Warn: Ocean Health Has Deteriorated Since Last UN Ocean Conference

• Marine heatwaves are intensifying, exploration for new oil and gas deposits in the ocean continues. destructive fishing practices persist, and plastic pollution keeps increasing.
• The third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) serves as crucial test of governments’ commitment to achieve the targets of SDG 14 as the window for meaningful ocean action narrows.
• OceanCare will present the “Because Our Planet Is Blue” petition, supported by over 110,000 people, to UN Special Envoy Peter Thomson on World Oceans Day highlighting citizen expectations to global leaders.

As world leaders prepare for the third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3), beginning Monday, 9th of June, in Nice, France, marine conservation experts warn that ocean health has continued to deteriorate across key indicators since the last conference in 2022, despite international commitments to protect marine ecosystems. 

The conference represents a critical benchmark for assessing whether governments can urgently get on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 14 targets by 2030. However, the preliminary draft for the UNOC3 final declaration lacks ambition and meaningful action which is needed to address the marine crisis effectively. 

Fabienne McLellan, Managing Director of OceanCare said: 

“The high level gathering in Nice is, at its very core, is a test of political will. Since Lisbon 2022, we’ve seen ocean conditions worsen across multiple indicators whilst governments offer aspirational language without much tangible action. OceanCare will be in Nice to ensure scientific evidence and citizen voices reach decision-makers as they are looked-upon to set the path with transformative actions the Ocean needs. in view of the interlinked crises of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. The window for effective ocean action is likely to close within the next 5-10 years. The world is watching if this forum will deliver the decisive action long called for by the scientific and global community. Because our planet is blue.” 

This year’s World Ocean Day (8 June) theme “Sustaining What Sustains Us” emphasises the urgent need for ecosystem restoration. Without immediate action to protect and restore marine habitats, these ecosystems cannot continue supporting life on Earth. To strengthen this call, OceanCare will present its Because Our Planet Is Blue petition, with over 113,500 signatures, to Ambassador Peter Thomson, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Ocean, who has been a strong voice for the ocean. At the centre of the initiative are six concrete demands: banning offshore oil and gas exploration, implementing mandatory vessel speed reduction, prohibiting destructive fishing practices, adopting comprehensive and binding plastic pollution rules, agreeing on a deep-sea mining moratorium, and ensuring effective marine habitat protection and restoration. 

OceanCare’s experts will monitor the negotiations closely, engage with government delegations, and provide an independent assessment of whether the conference delivers transformative action needed to reverse current negative trends and achieve genuine ocean protection and restoration.

Background Information

The Third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) takes place 9-13 June 2025 in Nice, France, focusing on implementation of Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life Below Water). Current assessments indicate widespread failure to meet 2030 targets. 

UN World Oceans Day 2025 (8 June) carries the theme “Wonder: Sustaining What Sustains Us,” emphasising the restoration and protection of marine ecosystems. The annual observance highlights the Ocean’s critical role in sustaining life on Earth and the urgent need for nature-based solutions to address the marine crisis. 

The Ocean covers more than 70 percent of Earth’s surface, provides around 50 percent of global oxygen production, and has absorbed approximately 90 percent of excess heat from rising greenhouse gas emissions. The Paris Agreement’s goals require immediate cessation of new fossil fuel exploration, yet billions continue flowing to seabed oil and gas projects. 

Current data shows marine heatwaves are intensifying, an estimated 9 million tonnes of plastic waste continue entering the Ocean annually, and collision risks between ships and whales remain substantially high in critical areas despite international commitments made in 2022. These ongoing trends highlight the gap between political commitments and implementation of protection measures. 

The Because Our Planet Is Blue campaign launched on World Oceans Day 2024, calling for six transformative ocean protection actions: 

1. Ban offshore oil and gas exploration and phase out existing fossil fuel extraction 
2. Implement mandatory measures to reduce vessel speed 
3. Ban destructive fisheries such as bottom trawling 
4. Adopt global rules to end plastic pollution, addressing the full life cycle of plastics 
5. Agree on a global moratorium on deep-sea mining 
6. Ensure effective protection of marine habitats and enforce marine conservation measures to restore ecosystems damaged by human activities 

OceanCare coordinated an open letter signed by over 200 NGOs from around the world calling for a complete ban on offshore oil and gas exploration, which was released ahead of UNOC3. The letter argues that continued fossil fuel exploration in marine environments contradicts the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C and causes severe harm to marine wildlife through seismic airgun surveys that produce some of the loudest human-made underwater noise.

Publications

• OceanCare Declaration to UNOC3: Because Our Planet Is Blue 
• OceanCare: Commentary to the Zero Draft (REV1) of the UNOC3 Declaration 
• UNOC3 Global Online Stakeholder Consultation – OceanCare Submission (28/08/2024) 
• Open Letter from NGOs: End Fossil Fuel Exploration in the Ocean (with list of signatories) 

Images

• Because Our Planet Is Blue – Visual “Restoration” 
• Because Our Planet Is Blue – Campaign visuals download