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World leaders urged to adopt binding treaty protecting high seas

The proposed global treaty is intended to strengthen marine protections for international waters that are beyond the 200 nautical mile (370 kilometer) jurisdiction of coastal nations.

Plastic debris washed ashore from the Pacific Ocean
Plastic debris washed ashore from the Pacific Ocean (AN/Kevin Krejci)

UNITED NATIONS (AN) — The United Nations leaned on star power to launch a renewed push for a legally binding global treaty in 2020 that would promote conservation and sustainable uses of high seas covering almost half the planet.

Governments began negotiating the first draft text of a global ocean treaty at U.N. headquarters in New York during Monday's opening of the third session of an intergovernmental conference that runs through August 30.

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