EU Statement – 26th meeting of the Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea: Marine ecosystem restoration

Esteemed Co-Chairs, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have the honour to speak on behalf of the European Union and its Member States. At the outset, we would like to once more congratulate you on your appointment as Co-Chairs and to express our full support for your work. 

We would like to start by reaffirming our support for the UN Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea. This process enables us to meet and address key topics and issues in an open and inclusive space. The EU has therefore again made a contribution to the trust fund this year, namely of EUR 20.000. We also extend our appreciation to the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea for its continued support and efforts.

The European Union and its Member States welcome the focus on “Marine Ecosystem Restoration” at this year’s Informal Consultative Process, which is a theme we proposed back in 2023. The increasing scientific evidence about the accelerating degradation of habitats and loss of biodiversity across the globe has resulted in a growing recognition of the ecological and socio-economic value of healthy ecosystems, including in the ocean. Where marine ecosystems have been harmed, the consequences are evident on biodiversity, ecosystem functions and related services, including those pertinent to coastal communities whose livelihoods depend on the ocean. 

Effective marine nature restoration strategies, both active and passive, can help rebuild and enhance the resilience of degraded marine habitats, safeguard marine biodiversity, and contribute to mitigating the impacts of climate change. To achieve the ocean conservation targets, and maintain them in the long-term, the EU and its Member States are devoted to take effective action to restore marine ecosystems.

The EU and its Member States have announced targeted measures to tackle ocean degradation, climate change and the overexploitation of marine resources, with a clear focus on protecting and restoring marine ecosystems. 

For example, through the Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters”, the EU is providing EUR 4 million in technical assistance to up to 50 communities (regions, cities and small municipalities) to prepare transition agendas for projects that better protect and restore ocean and freshwater ecosystems. 

We are also investing EUR 20 million under Horizon Europe to advance restoration science, notably to develop and test innovative active restoration of deep-sea habitats and create hybrid blue–grey nature-based solutions that integrate climate infrastructure with biodiversity and ecosystem service gains.

In parallel, we are strengthening our regulatory frameworks to deliver measurable restoration outcomes. In particular, the EU Nature Restoration Regulation sets restoration targets to 2050, to improve the condition of marine habitats, re-establish lost habitat types, restore degraded habitats and certain marine species, and close key knowledge gaps through national restoration plans that prevent further deterioration. 

Such efforts are reinforced by the European Ocean Pact, which unifies EU ocean policies under a single framework to address environmental, economic, and social challenges in our ocean and seas.  The Pact includes provisions for stronger maritime spatial planning, effective Marine Protected Areas and the development of European blue carbon reserves, underpinned by enhanced ocean observation, open marine data and a European Digital Twin Ocean operational by 2030 to guide evidence-based restoration.

In addition, ocean monitoring is critical for providing data streams, assessing ecosystem functioning and forecasting future scenarios. It is crucial that policy makers have access to the best available knowledge about the marine environment to support timely and sound decision making, allowing for the sustainable management of marine resources, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable blue growth.

For this reason and to expand the EU's role in ocean observation, we have adopted an EU Ocean Observation Initiative called OceanEye. This initiative builds on the European Digital Twin Ocean and aims to strengthen European and international ocean observation capacity. We want to develop a robust, European marine knowledge value chain to turn data into action, and science into solutions for all. 

We would also like to highlight the importance of cooperation to assist States, in particular developing States, to better implement the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and to benefit from healthy and safe ocean and seas. 

Part XII of the Convention requires all States to cooperate on a global and regional basis, in formulating international rules, standards and recommended practices for the protection and preservation of the marine environment. To achieve this, international cooperation under the BBNJ Agreement will play a crucial role. The Agreement will allow the establishment of measures such as area-based management tools, including marine protected areas, which will be crucial for the restoration and protection of marine ecosystems in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction. The Conference of the Parties will have the possibility to discuss opportunities to support rehabilitation and ecological restoration of marine ecosystems. The EU and its Member States continue to encourage the swift ratification and implementation of the BBNJ Agreement, including through supporting partner countries in ratifying and implementing the Agreement.

In addition to measures taken at national level by Member States and on top of what has already been shared, the EU has been involved in several initiatives and is undertaking numerous actions to support marine ecosystem restoration. Indicatively:

• The EU is taking measures to support the achievement and maintenance of the good environmental status of EU waters under the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive in close cooperation with the relevant Regional Seas’ Conventions. 

• Likewise, the EU works to continuously improve the sustainability of EU fisheries, for example through fishing gear selectivity and by reducing the impact of fisheries on sensitive species and the seabed.

• The EU actively supports international efforts within the scope of Regional Fisheries Management Organisations to adopt measures to accurately identify and protect areas where vulnerable marine ecosystems exist or are likely to exist, including from harmful bottom fishing activities. Overall, Area-Based Management Tools are a clear and distinctive example of how ecosystem protection and restoration can deliver measurable conservation outcomes while generating broader socio-ecological benefits. Among these tools, marine reserves can enhance adjacent fisheries by increasing the abundance and export of marine organisms beyond reserve boundaries, thereby supporting the long-term sustainability of fishing activities.

• The Copernicus Marine Service (CMEMS), which is part of the EU’s state-of-the-art space infrastructure for Earth Observation, provides global data from satellites and ground, airborne, and seaborne measurement systems and modelling capabilities to help users better understand and sustainably manage our environment. 

• Also, aquaculture can contribute to marine ecosystem restoration when it is designed to enhance ecosystem functions, in addition to food production. The EU Strategic Guidelines for aquaculture frame this sector as one of the contributors to the green transition of the EU economy. They specifically call for diversification toward low-trophic species, and for promoting aquaculture production models that deliver ecosystem services.

• From a financing and investment perspective, the EU is advancing marine ecosystem restoration through an integrated strategy that combines public funding, regulatory signals, innovation support and mechanisms to mobilise private capital at scale. In doing so, the EU places strong emphasis on improving the enabling conditions for private investments and develops innovative market-based mechanisms to reward measurable restoration outcomes.

• We also believe that the environmental footprint of maritime transport necessitates transformative action. Such action requires the development of skills, knowledge, and infrastructure to adopt and optimize new marine technologies for the benefit of the ocean. A critical area of focus is enabling the use of new types of fuels (e.g., bio- or e-methanol and -ammonia) and technologies (e.g., fuel cell-based technologies, wind-assisted propulsion) on ships. Finally, the EU, under its Global Gateway Policy, is developing a flagship initiative to promote the creation of green shipping corridors with partner countries worldwide.

More information on projects and initiatives from the EU and its Member States is included in our submission to this meeting, which can be found on the DOALOS website.

These projects are few examples of tools that are being used to improve cooperation and strengthen marine ecosystem restoration efforts.

We recognise that significant challenges remain, and key gaps must still be addressed. Greater investment is needed to ensure all nations can participate, alongside stronger cooperation at every level to expand access to marine ecosystem restoration capacities and technologies that support the ocean’s long-term conservation and sustainable use.

We look forward to constructive discussions on how to deepen knowledge, strengthen understanding and improve international cooperation. A healthy and safe ocean is a global public good, and the tools, data and expertise required to protect and restore it should be shared accordingly.

I thank you.