...work in progress. still reading
International Cooperation
Currently, there are several international organizations working towards aspects of our goal to save the oceans. The UN has employed several research and management groups and set out governance of the oceans by the Law of the Sea and subsequent agreements and annexes. Other organizations for protection of the oceans fall under Regional Fishery Bodies (RFBs), also known as Regional Fishery Management Councils.
Current International Legislation
The Law of the Sea is a complex and comprehensive document that, when put into action after the Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982, formalized traditional maritime law, as well as outlined conduct of nations as it relates to boundaries, deep seabed mining, passage through territorial zones, settlement of international disputes, and marine research, among other topics. The Law of the Sea Treaty "marked the culmination of more than 14 years of work involving participation by more than 150 countries representing all regions of the world, all legal and political systems and the spectrum of socio/economic development" (Oceans and LOS, 2007).
Territorial sea is a region up to but not exceeding 12 nautical miles from a baseline. Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) are areas not exceeding 200 nautical miles from the baseline in which the coastal State has exclusive mining rights to natural resources. While coastal States maintain sovereignty of territorial sea, foreign vessels are permitted "innocent passage" without prejudice.
UN Organizations
The UN has several branches to conduct research, compose law, enforce treaties, and settle disputes regarding the Law of the Sea and subsequent treaties relating to the governance of the oceans, coasts, and marine life.
UN-OCEANS encompasses most UN operations relating to the oceans. After the UN Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, Agenda 21 - "an international programme of action for global sustainable development for the 21st century" - was adopted (UN-OCEANS, 2005). Chapter 17 of Agenda 21 calls for protection of the oceans, resulting in the formation of the Sub-committee on Oceans and Coastal Areas of the Administrative Committee on Coordination (ACC SOCA) in 1993. Due to the extensive number of agencies and committees already addressing the issue of the oceans and the need for a "new inter-agency coordinating mechanism," in September 2003, "the United Nations High-Level Committee on Programmes approved the creation of an Oceans and Coastal Areas Network (subsequently named 'UN-Oceans') to build on SOCA" (UN-OCEANS, 2005). As stated by their webpage, UN-OCEANS has been established to:
Strengthen coordination and cooperation of United Nations activities [and Secretariats of International Organizations and Bodies] related to oceans and coastal areas;
- Review the relevant programmes and activities of the United Nations system, undertaken as part of its contribution to the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), Agenda 21 and the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;
- Identify emerging issues, define joint actions and establish specific task teams to deal with these, as appropriate;
- Promote the integrated management of oceans at the international level...;
- Promote the coherence of United Nations system activities on oceans and coastal area....
The partners and/or potential partners of the UN-OCEANS program, which includes any agency expressing a will to be included, are the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA), UN Division of Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea (UN-DOALOS), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), UN Environmental Program (UNEP), World Bank (IBRD), International Maritime Organization (IMO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), UN Development Program (UNDP), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), International Seabed Authority (ISA), International Labor Organization (ILO), UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), World Trade Organization (WTO), World Health Organization (WHO), UN Human Settlements Program ("UN-HABITAT"), UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), UN University, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), and International Hydrographic Organization (IHO).
The Fisheries and Aquaculture Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN focuses on sustainable fisheries and aquaculture production to meet the needs of the world's population. The Department's goals include creating jobs to alleviate poverty, bolstering international trade and economies, and providing a sustainable fish supply. The Department has also created a Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. Within this Code of Conduct, several International Plans of Action (IPOAs), which would apply to "all States and entities and to all fishers," have been suggested. Specifically, for the management of fishing capacity, "States should take measures to prevent or eliminate excess fishing capacity and should ensure that levels of fishing effort are commensurate with sustainable use of fishery resources." Possible solutions in this case include well-defined property rights for international waters, "incentive blocking measures," such as fishing seasons and closed areas, and "incentive adjusting measures," which would include requiring a fishing license and quotas. The suggested action to be taken currently involves assessing and monitoring fishing capacity as well as preparing and implementing national plans. Immediate action would focus on major international fisheries requiring urgent attention. Considerations would include the needs of specific countries. International compliance is the main difficulty recognized with the actual implementation of these proposals. Unfortunately, no specific plans have been on proposed, hence the need for reform.
The UN Environmental Program focuses on the research and science of the issue. Though the UNEP is not currently heading any projects on the oceans, they are one of the UN organizations supporting GESAMP.
The Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection, or GESAMP, is a research team that works on science of sustainable oceans. GESAMP is a joint initiative supported by several UN organizations, including UNEP, FAO, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO-IOC), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO)), the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
International Maritime Organization (IMO)
Safe, Secure, and Efficient Shipping on Clean Oceans
Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (UNESCO-IOC)
Regional Fishery Bodies
Regional Fishery Bodies are essential to the protection of marine resources and the management of the oceans.
The European Union is one of the most respected RFBs, though it does not mitigate marine/oceanic management only.
Works Cited
UN-OCEANS is a site that presents the history, mission, and partners of the UN-OCEANS program
(http://www.oceansatlas.org/www.un-oceans.org/About.htm#Participation).
Oceans and Law of the Sea: Division for Ocean Affairs and Law of the Sea. (23 October 2007). United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982. Retrieved 12 November 2007, from the World Wide Web: http://www.un.org/Depts/los/convention_agreements/convention_overview_convention.htm.
^^I got this citation method from the Cornell Library on what to do when citing an entire website.