An updated U.N. treaty governing the exploitation of deep-sea bioresources is urgently needed, EU Maritime Affairs Commissioner Maria Damanaki said on April 11 at a U.N.-sponsored conference in Paris, in an attempt to assure a rational and fair harvest of resources from in deep-sea areas.
Her call came as private companies and scientific teams are stepping up “bioprospecting” in deep-sea areas, seeking sometimes rare marine organisms whose molecular compounds and unique properties can be used in anti-cancer pharmaceuticals, food and other potentially lucrative commercial fields.
That has led to fears of over-harvesting, physical disruptions of fragile ecosystems and pollution in the absence of an updated convention to protect the diversity of deep-sea marine life…