European Oceans Pact for better water governance of Europe’s seas

The European Commission is working on a pact for better ocean governance and promote a resilient blue economy. The pact was discussed by about 400 participants during the Mission Ocean and Water Forum that took place during the European Ocean Days on 5 March in Brussels. The final version of the European Oceans Pact will be presented at the 3rd United Nations Ocean Conference in Nice which will be held from 9 to 13 June in 2025.

“If we want to tackle climate change, we have to be friendly to the ocean”, said Charline Vitcheva, Director-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries at the European Commission. In her speech she referred to a topic that was discussed by many participants. “Well-being versus competitiveness. We have to be realistic. We live in a very competitive world, but competitiveness does not go against sustainability.” Vitcheva emphasized that if we want to have weight in a competitive world, we have to combine sustainability with the blue economy. According to her this is ‘achievable’.

Public consultation

The European Commission initiated a public consultation on the European Oceans Pact from January 20 until the 17th of February. The amount of feedback that was received was huge. In total, 931 citizens and organisations left their comments. Vitcheva said that nearly 25% of these reactions were from abroad, mainly from the UK, USA and Canada. So, the impact of our oceans reaches far beyond the European Union.

Conflicting interests

Many reactions (172) came from fishers. This includes small fishing communities, recreational fishers and big fishing companies. Many of them (354 in total) were against bottom trawling and requested a ban on it. Aquaculture, a booming industry in the EU, was mentioned in 77 reactions. Offshore wind energy, nuclear, thermal and tidal power plants came up in 40 comments. The scope of the European Oceans Pact is very broad. Vitcheva said that ‘filling in the gaps’ was one of the objectives of the meetings during the European Ocean Days.

Marine knowledge framework

The European Oceans Pact aims to provide a comprehensive and holistic governance framework that integrates environmental, economic, and social aspects. This initiative is part of the EU’s broader agenda to combat climate change, safeguard marine biodiversity, and strengthen the economic resilience of coastal and maritime communities. By streamlining data collection and reporting mechanisms, the initiative aims to enhance the EU’s marine knowledge framework, enabling more effective decision-making and cross-sectoral cooperation.