Law Of The Sea And Peaceful Uses Of The Seabeds

The Book, The Law Of The Sea, With An Introduction By Professor U.N. Gupta, Is Designed To Meet The Needs And Requirements Of Scholars Of International Law And International Relations; Professionals Engaged In Merchant Shipping Or Connected With Naval Forces And The Policy Makers Of Different States Who Want To Know About National Interests In The Seas, Among Others. Necessarily, The Book Presents In Depth The Various Forms And Aspects Of Human Interests Involved When The States Do Or Do Not Have A Sea Coast. This Study Encompasses A Period Of About Six Centuries And Is Dotted With Conflict Of Claims Made By Kings And States From Time To Time, Various Mutual Understandings Made, Treaties Or Conventions Signed By Them, Or Customary International Law Relating To The Sea As It Gradually Developed By Consensus Or By Sufferance. The Sea Has Provided An Easy Method Of Navigation For Trade Or Empire Building Purposes. The Various Parts Of The Sea, Like Bays, Gulfs Or Territorial Sea Got Defined In The Process. This Part Of The Law Of Sea Which Is History-Based And Mainly Customary Has Been Included In The Introduction Part Of The Book. With The Technological Advancements Made For Winning The Second World War, The Victorious Powers Saw The Vast Economic Potential For Exploitation Presented To Them By The Widespread Ocean Wealth. This Capability And Future Prospects Gave Copernican Turn To Customary Law Of The Sea As It Was Till The End Of Second World War. The New Competitive Wave Set In Motion By The Two Unilateral Proclamations By The Usa In 1945 Resulted In The Overhauling Of The Law Of Sea By The Four 1958 Geneva Conventions On The Law Of Sea. The Introduction And The Appendices To The Book Give The Rationale, Substance And The Texts Of These Developments. These Also Lead To Various International Understands, Conventions And Treaties Made For Peaceful Uses Of The Seas By The States. The Important Use Of The Seas For Extraction Of Sea Wealth Gave Rise To Further Demands On The Law Of Sea In 1960S And 1970S Leading To The Iii United Nations Conferences On The Law Of Sea. The Culminated Comprehensive 1981 Un Convention On The Law Of Sea After Long Drawn Consensus Procedures By All The States Of The World, Coastal Or Non-Coastal, Is In Various Ways Studied In The Book And The Text Of 1981 Convention On The Law Of Sea Has Been Included In Its Appendices.

The Law of the Seabed reviews the most pressing legal questions raised by the use and protection of natural resources on and underneath the world’s seabeds. While barely accessible, the seabed plays a major role in the Earth’s ecological balance. It is both a medium and a resource, and is central to the blue economy. New uses and new knowledge about seabed ecosystems, and the risks of disputes due to competing interests, urge reflection on which regulatory approaches to pursue. The regulation of ocean activities is essentially sector-based, and the book puts in parallel the international and national regimes for seabed mining, oil and gas, energy generation, bottom fisheries, marine genetic resources, carbon sequestration and maritime security operations, both within and beyond the national jurisdiction. The book contains seven parts respectively addressing the definition of the seabed from a multidisciplinary perspective, the principles of jurisdiction delimitation under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the regimes for use of non-living, living and marine biodiversity resources, the role of state and non-state actors, the laying and removal of installations, the principles for sustainable and equitable use (common heritage of mankind, precaution, benefit sharing), and management tools to ensure coexistence between activities as well as the protection of the marine environment.

These commentaries are based almost entirely on the formal and informal documentation of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III, 1973-1982), coupled, where necessary, with the personal knowledge of editors, contributors, or reviewers, many of whom were principal negotiators or UN personnel who participated in the Conference.