Law of the Sea Treaty (LOST) PDF

**THE LAW OF THE SEA TREATY (LOST)** **Background:\ \ Fishing Treaties and Laws: International Cooperation to Protect Aquatic Ecosystems** **Fish are not only delicious to eat but also very healthy. People all over the world depend on this source of protein, but due to a variety of issues such as...

**THE LAW OF THE SEA TREATY (LOST)** **Background:\ \ Fishing Treaties and Laws: International Cooperation to Protect Aquatic Ecosystems** **Fish are not only delicious to eat but also very healthy. People all over the world depend on this source of protein, but due to a variety of issues such as habitat degradation, climate change and increase in consumption, pose fisheries and habitat in trouble.** **Ove fishing -- which means fish are [caught than can be replaced] naturally by the population has serious consequences for both [fish stock] and the environment. Unfortunately, 80% of worlds monitor fisheries are either fully or over exploited. This means that these fisheries are fished above sustainable levels and are at the risk of disappearing forever** **Reversing this is difficult because of a number of reasons.... Use of [fishing gears like ]** **[bottom] trawls.** **Also, a [misconception] that because the ocean floor is so large and deep that there is a [never-ending supply of fish] from which we can harvest.** **Also, much of the [vast ocean] waters do [not fall in the legal jurisdiction of any] [country], making regulation an international cooperation issue.** **However, Many problems related to overfishing such as food web disruption, destruction of the in physical environment and fishery collapse have been recognized and there are many national and international laws in place to help stop overfishing as well as curb the damage it causes.** **UNCLOS (**[United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]**) sets a comprehensive legal framework to regulate the space , uses and resources of the worlds ocean. Which includes fisheries marine mammals and plants.** **UNCLOS provides protection for marine environment provision as regarding legal boundaries within the oceans and maintains traditional regulations for oceans users while also introducing modern regulations as new issues arise.** **[Major international laws and treaties to protecting aquatic systems(UNCLOS)]** HISTORICALLY, rules concerning the use of oceans were established by customary international laws. A term used to describe practices considered globally required by most nations from time to time. The uncertainties inherent in such an approch led to the adoption of four conventions on ocean governance in 1958 The conventions were ratified(formal consent) by use and many coutries but soon came to be insufficient. In 1960 UNITED STATES became concerned with increasingly growing number of coastal states setting control over vast reaches of the oceans, New issues including marine pollution gained greater prominence. 1973 negotiations were launched for a comprehensive convention on the law of the sea. The convention was adopted in 1982. Its provision reflected longstanding UNITED STATES negotiating objective which include: 1. Recognition of navigational and overflight freedom 2. Limit on coastal state jurisdiction to a 12 -mile territorial sea 3. The establishment of 200-mile exclusive economic zones 4. Tights to the ocean floor to the edge of the continental shelf 5. Provision on deep seabed mining at odds including requirement for the mandatory transfer of technologies. The Law of the Sea Treaty calls for technology transfers and wealth transfers from developed to undeveloped nations. This was negotiated in 1970's. **Another way the New International Economic Order has been described is \"redistributionist.\" ** 1. **It also requires parties to the treaty to adopt regulations and laws to control pollution of the marine environment.  Such provisions were among the reasons President Ronald Reagan rejected the treaty in 1982.  As Edwin Meese, U.S. Attorney General under President Reagan, explained, \"\...it was out of step with the concepts of economic liberty and free enterprise that Ronald Reagan was to inspire throughout the world.\"** 2. **In additional to the economic provisions, the treaty also establishes specific jurisdictional limits on the ocean area that countries may claim. International waters (territorial waters, or a territorial sea) as defined by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, is a belt of coastal waters extending at most 12 nautical miles (22.224 km; 13.8 mi) from the baseline (usually the mean low-water mark) and a 200-mile exclusive economic zone limit.(370.4km continental shelf)** 3. **(I nautical mile =1.852kilometers)** **Some proponents of the treaty believe that the treaty will establish a system of property rights for mineral extraction in deep sea beds, making the investment in such ventures more attractive.**\ \ **Notwithstanding concerns raised about the Law of the Sea Treaty - and there have been many - the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee recommended U.S. accession to the treaty in a unanimous vote in March 2004. ** **Kenya maritime authority**  **It is semi-autonomous agency in charge or regulatory oversight over the Kenyan maritime industry. Maritime safety and security is one of the authority's core functions** **Maritime meansterms descring anything involving the sea and ships whales ad dolphins are maritime animals** **Nauticals refers to ship only** - \"To ensure sustainable safe, secure, clean and efficient water transport for the benefit of stakeholders through effective regulation, coordination and oversight of maritime affairs.\" - KMA was Formed in 2004 - It is a semi-autonomous agency in charge of regulatory oversight over the Kenyan maritime industry. - Maritime safety and security is one of the Authority's core functions. - KMA strives to strengthen national maritime administration through enhancement of regulatory and institutional capacities for safety and security, fostering effective implementation of international maritime conventions and other mandatory instruments on safety & security, promoting maritime training, coordinating Search and Rescue, preventing marine pollution and promoting preservation of the marine environment as well as promoting trade facilitation and maritime investments. - Foreign Ships calling at the port of Mombasa, Kenya are inspected by KMA ship surveyors in accordance with (IOMOU) Indian Ocean Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control to which Kenya is a member. - Kenya Maritime Authority is responsible for the operation of the Regional Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (RMRCC), now also known as the Mombasa Information Sharing Centre (ICS). - The Centre provides a communication center where seafarers can call in for help in cases of distress while at sea, in a large area covering Tanzania, Seychelles and Somalia as well as receiving and responding to piracy alerts and requests for information or assistance at all times.  - Kenya Maritime Authority has been in the lead in promoting maritime training and education in Kenya. **Key functions of Kenya Maritime Authority plays a significant role in marine pollution management in Kenya** - Kenya Maritime Authority is mandated to undertake measures to prevent, mitigate or eliminate threat of pollution to coastline by oil or other harmful substances. - KMA reduce and eliminate pollution caused by dumping or incineration at sea of wastes. KMA in collaboration with NEMA issue permits in accordance with type of wastes intended for dumping or for incineration at sea. - The Kenya Maritime Authority (KMA) manages the National Contingency Plan, along with the shipping, oil exploration and chemical industries with National emergency services - It sets out national arrangements, policies and principles for the management of maritime environmental Incidents. **Legislation is an important marine management tool. The following are objectives of frameworks in Kenya** **Marine Pollution (Shipping Operations) Act, 2012** - The bill provides for the prevention and control of pollution of the sea, - preparedness and response for pollution emergencies arising from ship transport and maritime operations. - liability and compensation for pollution damage arising from shipping transport operations and offshore installations. **National Marine Pollution Response Contingency Plan** provide integrated response arrangement to minimize the impacts of marine pollution from vessel casualties and spills from offshore petroleum facilities to maximize Kenya\'s marine pollution response capability It sets out national arrangements, policies and principles for the management of maritime environmental Incidents