Marine environmental protection is an important part of the law of the sea. Marine biological diversity is the foundation of a healthy marine environment. States independently adopt national strategies that contribute to the protection of marine biological diversity within marine spaces under their sovereignty. The duty to protect and conserve living resources extends also to the areas of sovereign rights of the coastal state, where states must take appropriate measures to preserve marine environment. The problem is that those national strategies and measures do not reach areas beyond national jurisdiction directly.
As a result, there is a growing need in the international community to adopt a global legal framework that will contribute to the protection of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. The breakthrough in the issue was achieved in 2015, when the United Nations General Assembly decided to develop an international legally binding instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, which is intended to supplement and unify the current legal regime. This new document will be the third implementing agreement to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Although the final text of the new implementing agreement has not been adopted yet, it is agreed to (i) establish a legal framework for access to marine genetic resources and sharing of benefits, (ii) establish rules for area-based management tools, including marine protected areas, (iii) strengthen environmental impact assessments and (iv) strengthen the capacity-building for developing countries and enable more transparent transfer of marine technology.
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