The United Nations (UN) has announced the agreement to protect marine life in international waters, called the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNF) treaty, or the High Seas Treaty (the Treaty) has officially entered into force. Its purpose is to protect the ocean zones that lie beyond national waters, called the “high seas.” While the UN has discussed a possible agreement governing the high seas for the last two decades, serious talks only began in 2017. The impetus was both to protect marine life generally, and to reach the UN’s goal to protect 30% of the Earth’s land and water by 2030. The Treaty text was finalized in June of 2023, but required 60 countries' to ratify it before it became legally binding. This requirement was reached on September 19, 2025, and the Treaty officially went into effect 120 days later, on January 17, 2026. As of February 11, 85 countries have ratified the Treaty.
In order to address the risk of barotrauma in reef fish, Congress passed the Direct Enhancement of Snapper Conservation and the Economy through Novel Devices (DESCEND) Act of 2020. The DESCEND Act addressed the risk of barotrauma by requiring commercial or recreational vessels fishing for reef fish to possess a venting tool or descending device that is rigged and ready for use when fishing in the Gulf. A venting tool is a device, such as a large needle, that enables the angler to penetrate the abdomen of a fish to release excess gases. A descending device helps anglers release fish at depth to minimize trauma.
As one of the first teams in the United States pioneering a product to control harmful algal blooms (HABs) in marine environments, there was no easy way for the Anderson Lab to learn about all the necessary governmental approvals that would be required before field testing their products in a marine environment. There wasn’t an instruction manual, let alone a success story or compilation of best practices for the lab to follow. As demonstrated in this case study, the lab faced many twists and turns while charting a path through the complex regulatory landscape to field test their products.
The January 2026 issue of The SandBar is now available. The lead story is: Search and Sea? “Sure”: Regulating Lobstermen Off Maine’s Coast.
Commercial aquaculture has emerged amidst the economic growth of the seafood industry. In response to concerns over overfishing, fish farming has become a promising alternative to wild-caught seafood and currently accounts for approximately half of the world’s seafood supply according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
Aquatic invasive species (AIS) are spread in many ways. One of the highest priority pathways identified in the United States is the overland transport of watercraft. In 2024, Creative Resources Strategies, LLC received funding from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to work with the National Sea Grant Law Center to develop model federal legislation to protect the nation’s aquatic resources from the interstate overland transport and spread of aquatic invasive species by watercraft.
The growing body of evidence supporting the negative effects of PFAS compounds has led to increased attention from Congress and executive branch federal agencies seeking to limit their uptake by the populace. States within the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain regions have also begun to take regulatory actions to address PFAS contamination. The purpose of this Comparative Analysis is to provide an overview of these steps taken by the federal and state governments to regulate PFAS in the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain region.
This case study examines Amara’s Law (Sec. 116943), a Minnesota bill that seeks to eliminate the non-essential use of PFAS, improve transparency in consumer products, and reduce environmental contamination. The case study also highlights the efforts of Amara Strande, a Minnesota resident whose battle with a rare form of liver cancer brought attention to PFAS contamination. The case study also discusses recent efforts to amend the law and challenge its legality in court.
The terms “biosolids” and “sewage sludge” are often used interchangeably. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) uses the term biosolid to specifically refer to sewage sludge that has been treated to comply with the EPA’s regulation related to sewage sludge- “Standards for the Use or Disposal of Sewage Sludge” or 40 C.F.R. Part 503. This sewage sludge will be applied to land as a fertilizer or soil conditioner. Land application is the most common disposal method for biosolids. Depending on the presence of certain pollutants in the sewage sludge, it may be applied to farms, golf courses, and even home gardens. This case study will cover recent U.S. EPA and state actions related to controlling the use of PFAS-contaminated biosolids.