Greenpeace Australia Pacific calls on new Australian Government to ratify Global Ocean Treaty

Sir David Attenborough’s latest documentary ‘Ocean’ was released in cinemas this week to mark the broadcaster's 99th birthday today, and mirrors his lifetime as it takes viewers through 100 years of discoveries about Earth's seas.

Sir Attenborough filmed with crew members over two years to include coral reefs, kelp forests and the open seas, to show why healthy oceans are so important for keeping the planet stable.

Now at 99 years old Sir Attenborough – a hero of natural history storytelling, is ready to have a frank and honest conversation about the ocean stating “after almost 100 years on the planet, I now understand the most important place on Earth is not on land, but at sea.”

And what’s happening at sea needs to be addressed directly with Greenpeace Australia Pacific calling on the new Australian government to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty within its first 100 days in power.

'Ocean' exposes the brutal realities of the global ocean under threat from industrial and destructive fishing like longlining and bottom trawling. At the end of the film, Sir Attenborough encourages world leaders to propose global ocean sanctuaries at the UN Ocean Conference in June, which can only be done once 60 nations ratify the Global Ocean Treaty. Australia signed the treaty in 2023, but has yet to bring it into force. 

From the premiere in Sydney, Georgia Whitaker, Senior Campaigner at Greenpeace Australia Pacific noted “It’s difficult to watch Ocean without feeling emotional about the state of the world’s ocean, but through the Global Ocean Treaty, there is hope. The film sets the stage for the new Labor government to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty in the first 100 days in power. 

“Australians love the ocean, and the election showed Australians are voting for a nature-forward agenda for our country. With the UN Ocean Conference fast approaching, Australia has the opportunity to show leadership on the world stage and protect the open ocean by finally ratifying the Global Ocean Treaty, which they agreed to in 2023. 

“The ocean is under attack from all angles – from global heating, industrial fishing, and the Trump government opening the seabed to deep sea mining. Every day without protection, the open ocean and all the life it supports faces catastrophic collapse. But humanity can heal the ocean; world governments have the tools in the treaty, they just need to bring it into force.” 

In the Tasman Sea between Australia and Aotearoa-New Zealand, longlining is the most prevalent industrial fishing method; longliners come from around the world to plunder the abundant open ocean of the Tasman Sea, catching and killing countless innocent animals like sharks, turtles and seabirds each year. 

The premiere comes as the first Australian government-supported science symposium to understand the importance of the high seas of the South Tasman Sea and Lord Howe Rise area comes to a close. 

The South Tasman Sea and Lord Howe Rise of the Tasman Sea is an area of special biological significance identified by the UN – and must be one of the first places protected as part of 30 by 30, the move to protect 30% of the oceans by 2030.

Image top. Amber Bourke and Olivia Rose holding banners reading ‘Protect The Ocean’ at the Eye of Roach, Lord Howe Island. Rose is a free-dive instructor on Lord Howe Island. Bourke, Australia's deepest female freediver, joined Greenpeace Australia Pacific on Lord Howe Island as a creative partner. At the 2023 Vertical Blue freediving competition, she reached a depth of 81 metres on a single breath, setting a new all-time Australian freediving record; Image centre. Banner in Ningaloo Reef, Exmouth, Western Australia reading ‘Protect Our Oceans’ is displayed near a turtle during Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior's documentation trip off Exmouth, Western Australia. Credit: © Harriet Spark / Grumpy Turtle Film / Greenpeace; Coral bleaching. Credit: Greenpeace