Ministerial Letter

G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment

The following letter, signed by organisations from across the world, addresses climate and environmental ministers from G7 countries ahead of the G7 ministerial meeting on April 15-16, 2023.

If you would like your organisation to be added to the letter please email travis@oceanprotect.org or complete this form before April 11, 2023.


Dear Climate, Energy and Environment Ministers of the G7,

Ahead of the G7 Ministers’ Meeting on Climate, Energy and Environment on 15-16 April, we are united in urging you to prioritize ocean action and protection on the Agenda of the 2023 G7 Summit.

All G7 governments need to listen to both science and their citizens and recognize the critical importance of a healthy global ocean and resilient marine ecosystems to address climate change and deliver the Global Biodiversity Framework to protect life on our planet. We therefore call on G7 Leaders to make concrete commitments to ocean protection at the G7 Hiroshima Summit in May.

Firstly, it is vital that G7 countries reaffirm their commitment to the 2022 G7 Ocean Deal, and agree to key follow up actions that reflect progress and developments made in the past year. This includes taking proactive steps to achieve the recently agreed Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Target to protect at least 30% of the ocean by 2030 (the 30×30 target), just seven years away.

Secondly, G7 countries must support the ratification and implementation of the landmark new ‘High Seas Treaty’ to ensure the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction. Following the historic agreement over this legally binding instrument on 4 March 2023, it is now critical that all G7 countries commit to ratify the Treaty as soon as possible, and to work with other countries to swiftly secure the 60 ratifications needed for the Treaty to enter into force. Ideally, this should be achieved in time for the UN Ocean Conference to be held in France in June 2025. G7 members must also commit to ensuring adequate funds are available to support developing countries with the resources and capacity needed to effectively implement the Treaty. As an essential component to meeting the 30×30 target, G7 members should agree to work together to support the protection of key high seas areas once the Treaty has entered into force.

Thirdly, G7 countries must look to the future and take decisive action to protect the deep ocean and the vital ecosystem services it provides, including carbon sequestration and storage. It is imperative that all G7 countries safeguard the health of the deep sea from destructive extraction by urgently calling for a moratorium on deep-sea mining and a prohibition on bottom trawling on seamounts and other vulnerable marine ecosystems in the high seas. In addition, and in line with the precautionary principle, G7 countries must commit to taking a precautionary approach to deep-sea carbon capture and storage technologies until the environmental, social and economic risks are comprehensively understood.

Finally, we call on the G7 countries to work together to break the impasse over the designation of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in Antarctica’s waters through the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), an important step towards meeting the 30×30 target and their biodiversity commitments. A special CCAMLR meeting will take place in Santiago, Chile from 19-23 June, dedicated to ensuring progress for three Antarctic MPA proposals in the East Antarctica, the Weddell Sea, and the Antarctic Peninsula. After years of deadlock, it is essential that the six G7 countries that are members of CCAMLR (France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US), as well as the EU, commit to continue working together to secure full support for designating these MPA proposals is obtained at CCAMLR this year.

Strong commitments to protect the ocean must be included both in the Summit Agenda and in the Communiqué adopted by the G7 Leaders. This will demonstrate that the G7 is ready to take the lead towards meeting global commitments to combat the climate and biodiversity crises.

We hope that G7 leaders will champion ocean protection at the G7 Summit and commit to actions vital for the health of all people and the future of our planet.

Signed,

Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition

Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory

Blue Green Future, LLC

Blue Ventures

Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS)

Civil Society Forum of Tonga

David Suzuki Foundation

Deep Sea Conservation Coalition

Deep Sea Mining Campaign

Deutsche Stiftung Meeresschutz

Deutsche Umwelthilfe e.V.

ecOceanica

Friends of the Earth Japan

Fundación Montescola

Gallifrey Foundation

Global Ocean Trust

High Seas Alliance

International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)

KYMA sea conservation & research

Mar Azul Uruguayo

Marine Conservation Institute

Marine Conservation Society

Marine Watch International

MERI Foundation

Mineral Inheritors Rights Association

MiningWatch Canada

Nature Canada signed by Emily McMillan

Oceancare

Ocean. Now!

oceans aware

Oceans North

Only One

Pan African Vision for the Environment (PAVE)

Project Everyone

Sciaena

SeaLegacy

Sharkproject

Sharkproject International

Sustainable Ocean Alliance

Te Ipukarea Society

The Ocean Foundation

The Ocean Project

Turkish Marine Research Foundation

West Coast Development Foundation

West Coast Environmental Law

Whale and Dolphin Conservation

Women4Oceans