The Cayman Islands is the newest signatory of the Hamilton Declaration on Collaboration for the Conservation of the Sargasso Sea.

Politician Kurt Tibbett signed the document on behalf of his government on January 3, making the Cayman Islands the ninth signatory.

The Hamilton Declaration is a political commitment by the signatories to work with the Government of Bermuda and the Sargasso Sea Commission to conserve the Sargasso Sea, the huge, iconic high seas ecosystem in the North Atlantic subtropical gyre.

Signed in Bermuda in March 2014 by the Azores, Bermuda, Monaco, Britain and the United States, the declaration was further backed by the British Virgin Islands, the Bahamas and Canada joined in 2016.

The Sargasso Sea Commission is appointed by the Bermuda Government after consultation with the other signatories. The commissioner is Bermudian Tammy Trott.

Environment minister Cole Simons stated: “I am very pleased that the Cayman Islands is now part of a growing number of jurisdictions lending oversight and protection to this important ecosystem. The Cayman Islands is the ninth signatory to date.”

David Freestone, executive secretary of the Sargasso Sea Commission, said: “The signing of the Hamilton Declaration in 2014 was a historic event in the move towards conservation of the high seas. The Commission is delighted to welcome the Cayman Islands as the most recent signatory.”