A school of bluefin tuna

Leading scientists call for permanent ban on high seas exploitation

A school of bluefin tuna

Bluefin tuna. Image by Tom Puchner, Flickr

Extractive activity in international waters – including fishing, seabed mining, and oil and gas exploitation – should be banned forever, according to top scientists.

The high seas, the vast international waters beyond national jurisdiction, cover 43 per cent of the planet’s surface and two-thirds of its living space. Yet they remain largely unprotected and increasingly threatened by overfishing, climate disruption and the rising interest in deep-sea mining.

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Daniel Pauly at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, September 2024. Photo by Valentina Ruiz Leotaud.

Evaluating the Gill Oxygen Limitation Theory: Insights from the FishBase Symposium

Daniel Pauly at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, September 2024. Photo by Valentina Ruiz Leotaud.

Daniel Pauly at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, September 2024. Photo by Valentina Ruiz-Leotaud.

In the heat of summer in central Greece, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki hosted the 22nd FishBase and SeaLifeBase Symposium.

Titled “Fishes in Changing Ecosystems,” the two-day event started on September 2, 2024, with a full day dedicated to some of the overarching themes the Sea Around Us team is doing research on.

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