Macron hosts conference on protecting biodiversity

MARSEILLE, France — Ahead of a global summit on biodiversity in France, President Emmanuel Macron called for better protection of the world’s high seas, which largely don’t fall under any national jurisdiction but are threatened by fishing and other human activities.

Macron later Friday formally opened the World Conservation Congress in the southern city of Marseille, on France’s Mediterranean coast. He is urging world leaders and institutions to safeguard biodiversity as they work to curb climate change and support human welfare. Thousands of people were set to attend the event, both in person and virtually, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The conference, held every four years, focuses on urgent action needed to protect wildlife. Several recent studies have reported that many of the planet’s ecosystems are severely strained by global warming, overuse and other threats.

Oceanic shark populations have dropped by 71% since 1970. More than half of all bird of prey species worldwide are declining in population — and 18 species are critically endangered. Warming temperatures and melting ice are projected to imperil 70% of Emperor penguin colonies by 2050.

Speaking to reporters, Macron announced the creation of a new global event meant to protect the high seas — which cover about half the planet’s surface. The “One Ocean

Summit” will be organized in France in coming months in coordination with the United Nations, he said.

“When we talk about oceans, 60% of these areas do not fall under a (national) jurisdiction,” Macron stressed.

The summit will aim at creating an international ocean law, he said. “Because otherwise, some nations do whatever they want in the high seas and may destroy biodiversity and at the same time may also make choices which, from a geopolitical point of view, are bad.”

On Friday, Macron and other conference participants, including European Council President Charles Michel, took a boat to Calanques National Park, a marine reserve near Marseille known for its blue waters topped by high white cliffs.

The conference, organized by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, runs until Sept. 11.