International
The United Nations’ Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) treaty entered into force on Saturday, driving new international measures to protect Earth’s oceans.
The treaty covers preservation of international waters, or the high seas, which make up over two-thirds of the ocean’s surface and more than 90% of Earth’s habitat by volume.
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres said the plan “fills a critical governance gap to secure a resilient and productive ocean for all. Let us now move swiftly to universal and full implementation.”
BBNJ is the first legally binding agreement for inclusive ocean governance, including provisions for Indigenous peoples and small communities.
“Everyone should bear in mind that there is now control of the activity in the high seas,” Tanzanian Diplomat Mzee Ali Haji said. “For instance, when you pollute, you are responsible for your acts.”
Building on the U.N. Convention of the Law of the Sea, BBNJ extends agreements relating to seabed exploitation and marine protection first established in 1994.
On Saturday, the treaty entered force, becoming legally binding for the 81 nations which have already ratified it. China, Germany, Japan, France and Brazil make up a few of the major participants.
The United States, one of the top five ranked ocean goods exporters, signed the treaty in 2023 but has not yet ratified it.
National
As part of the Artemis moon program, NASA moved its Space Launch System (SLS) rocket to its launchpad on Saturday.
The Artemis II mission plans to send four astronauts around the moon: three U.S. astronauts and one Canadian astronaut.
“We truly look at that and see teamwork, we see global cooperation, we see a strong nation leading the way,” Reid Wiseman, mission commander for Artemis II, told Reuters.
More than 100 employees and contractors oversaw the 4-mile transport of the 322-foot-tall SLS on its mobile launch platform last week.
“It represents an extraordinary American workforce, right there,” Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen said.
Artemis I marked the start of the new moon program with an unmanned flight in 2022.
Artemis II will be a 10-day journey, taking the four crewmembers further into space than humans have been before.
The mission is planned to launch Feb. 6, but has three potential launch windows before April in case unforeseen circumstances delay current plans.
Local
City officials received a letter from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security on Sunday announcing plans for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Oklahoma City.
According to a report from The Oklahoman, the small-scale processing center will repurpose an empty warehouse near Interstate 40 and Council Road and will be able to house up to 1,500 detainees arrested by ICE.
State Sen. Carri Hicks said the plans immediately sparked concern.
“It really caused me a lot of concern,” Hicks said. “I’m an elected official and lots of people have questions and are justly concerned that this could be already developed and in plans for implementation.”
Federal officials did not notify city or state leaders beforehand because federal law does not require it.
“Folks weren’t notified. The community didn’t even have awareness that this was undergoing plans,” Hicks said. “It’s not a rumor. We’ve seen the developed plans and we know that this is coming to that particular location.”
Hicks said she is concerned with the particular location of the detention center.
“It’s less than two miles from Western Heights School District, where about 50% of the students are Hispanic,” Hicks said. “So as I’m thinking about those students and I’m thinking about the parents and I’m thinking about the impact to that local community, it is appalling.”
The Oklahoman reported the phone number to reach the DHS official overseeing the project has been disconnected since Friday.
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