The world’s oceans are to be protected after ten years of talks.
The High Seas Treaty hopes to have by 2030 30% of the earth’s seas as secure havens.
The agreement was reached after 38 hours of talks at the United Nations HQ in New York.
The negotiations have been held up for years as countries wrangled over fishing and funding rights.
The defined areas will limit on how much fishing can take place, the routes of shipping lanes and deep-sea mining – when minerals are taken from a sea bed 200m or more below the surface.
Laura Meller, an oceans campaigner for Greenpeace Nordic, said:
“We commend countries for putting aside differences and delivering a treaty that will let us protect the oceans, build our resilience to climate change and safeguard the lives and livelihoods of billions of people.
“This is a historic day for conservation and a sign that in a divided world, protecting nature and people can triumph over geopolitics.”
Liz Karan, director of Pews Trust ocean governance team, said:
“It [the treaty] will take some time to take effect.
“Countries have to ratify it [legally adopt it] for it to enter force.”