FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Busan, Republic of Korea, 30 April 2025
This week at the 10th Our Ocean Conference (OOC10) in Busan, Republic of Korea, the Korean Government announced a suite of measures on ocean protection as part of its Blue Action Plan. A number of measures outlined within the Plan focus on marine protected areas (MPAs) with notable commitments to securing marine protections in the High Seas:
“Korea will actively participate in a task group under the South Pacific Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (SPRFMO) to promote the designation of MPAs in the Salas y Gomez and Nazca Ridge region. Korea will also contribute to establishing an appropriate protection mechanism for the Emperor Seamounts, based on the best available scientific information, within the framework of the North Pacific Fisheries Commission (NPFC).”
Bottom trawling is the key threat facing seamounts and other vulnerable marine ecosystems that Korea and other members of SPRFMO and NPFC are responsible for across the Pacific. Despite scientific discoveries and research which identify the biological significance of seamounts on the high seas, including the Emperor Seamount Chain, a handful of nations continue to trawl these oases of deep-sea diversity, causing significant and long lasting damage.
Civil society organizations that sit as Observers at SPRFMO and NPFC have welcomed this announcement from the Korean Government, which represents a positive step forward in the realisation of the importance of regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs) in delivering protection for seamounts and vulnerable marine ecosystems on the high seas.
With the international community widely supporting ratification of the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) Agreement, the RFMO protections that Korea is committing to support can provide a critical foundational layer for future high seas MPAs.
The Korean Government’s recognition of the need to collaborate with the scientific community, and follow the lead of best available science is another positive step forward. There is a wealth of scientific studies and discoveries which affirm the need for the protection of seamounts of the high seas.
The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC) is an Observer at all deep-sea RFMOs and has been campaigning for the protection of seamounts and other vulnerable marine ecosystems from bottom trawling for over twenty years.
Sian Owen, Director of the DSCC, said:
In this new era of ocean governance, with nations committing to high seas protection through the BBNJ Agreement, we hope the leadership shown by the Government of Korea to engage with RFMOs to deliver on-the-water protections in the near future will see other governments follow suit. In doing so, States can honour the commitments they have made over the past 20 years to protecting vulnerable marine ecosystems in the deep sea, while supporting the vision of the BBNJ Agreement.
Bronwen Golder, Campaign Director at the DSCC, said:
We applaud this ambition from the Korean Government and hope to see other members of RFMOs presiding over biodiversity hotspots such as the Emperor Seamount Chain follow suit. As we head from Our Ocean to the UN Ocean Conference, the Government of Korea is showing us a tangible pathway towards high seas protection.
Eunhee Kim, Executive Director of Climate Ocean Research Institute (CORI) said:
The Korean Government’s commitment, announced at Our Ocean Conference 2025, sets a landmark advancement in Korea’s leadership in global marine conservation. I look forward to Korea’s significant contribution toward achieving the 30 by 30 goal, particularly through efforts to safeguard key biodiversity hotspots such as the Emperor Seamount Chain, the Salas y Gómez and Nazca Ridges, and the Antarctic Peninsula.
Nichola Clark, Senior Officer on The Pew Charitable Trusts’ ocean governance team, said:
Securing robust high seas protections requires countries to operationalize ambition not only through the BBNJ Agreement but also through other key management organizations, such as RFMOs. The Korean government’s announcement at the 2025 Our Ocean Conference about its commitment to advancing meaningful protections of important high seas sites, like the Emperor Seamount Chain and Salas y Gómez and Nazca ridges, galvanizes momentum towards conserving these incredible places. We hope other countries will work to advance similar protections through management organizations.
The DSCC, The Pew Charitable Trusts, CORI, and Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) work at the North Pacific Regional Fisheries Commission as Observers and delegates to provide interventions and evidence in support of the protection of seamounts and vulnerable marine ecosystems of the North Pacific.
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About the DSCC
The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC) was founded in 2004 in response to international concerns over the harmful impacts of deep-sea bottom trawling.
Today, more than 130 non-governmental organizations (NGOs), fishers’ associations, and law and policy institutes worldwide are working together under the umbrella of the DSCC to ensure the protection of vulnerable deep-sea ecosystems.