Typical examples were the drastic increase in the fisheries’ catch capacity and the activity on the Continental Shelf. These developments created a need for legal clarification of the states’ rights and obligations in the field of the Law of the Sea in order to avoid disputes between the states.
Between 1949 and 1956 the UN International Law Commission prepared draft provisions on the law of the sea. This work formed the basis for the first UN conference on the law of the sea, which took place in Geneva in 1958. The conference adopted the following four conventions, of which Norway ratified only the last one:
- Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone
- Convention on the High Seas
- Convention on Fishing and Conservation of the Living Resources of the High Seas
- Convention on the Continental Shelf
Questions on the width of the territorial sea and the fishing limits
A number of important questions remained unsolved, particularly the questions on the width of the territorial sea and the fishing limits. Many coastal states introduced special fishing zones outside their territorial sea that were reserved to their own fishermen. This practice created conflict between nations that fished remote waters and the fishery interests of other states in the areas that had previously been regarded as the high seas. At the same time, there were fears that the coastal states would gradually extend their jurisdiction, a development that could undermine important principles of the freedom of the seas. The situation led to a growing need for a legal and political clarification of the unsolved questions.
In 1970, therefore, the General Assembly of the United Nations resolved to convene a new law of the Sea Conference for 1973. The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 is the result of the negotiations that began in 1973 and lasted right up to 1982. The Convention was adopted on 30 April 1982 and Norway signed it on 10 December 1994. It entered into force on 16 November 1994. By 3 September 2003, 143 states had ratified.
The Law of the Sea Convention of 1982 partly unifies and organises, that is, maintains previous customary or treaty law and partly lays down new law. The Convention deals with practically every form of exploitation of the sea, with the exception of military matters, and takes account of the fact that different ways of exploiting the sea are closely associated and must therefore be seen as a unity.
Embrace all ocean areas
The Convention has rules that, taken together, embrace all ocean areas, the airspace above them, the seabed and subsoil beneath them. It governs the states’ rights and duties in these areas and lays down rules for fishing, whaling and sealing, maritime traffic, the oil industry, environmental protection, marine scientific research and technology transfer. In addition comes a comprehensive dispute settlement system designed to secure the implementation of the treaty and help in the peaceful settlement of disputes. The Convention creates three new international bodies: the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in Hamburg, the International Seabed Authority in Jamaica, and the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, which conducts most of its business in New York.
The Law of the Sea Convention of 1982 permits a maximum width of the territorial sea of 12 nautical miles and emphasises the traditional right to innocent passage in the territorial sea. An exclusive economic zone can be up to 200 nautical miles from the baselines, and the coastal state has exclusive rights with regard to exploration for and exploitation of the natural resources, and also jurisdiction to exercise these and other rights. On the other hand, the coastal state must manage the living resources in a proper manner and grant other states access to any surplus. The exclusive and sovereign rights of the coastal states over the continental shelf are confirmed, and a new definition of the shelf is created that secures the interests of states with broad shelves. Countries with continental shelves that reach further out than 200 nautical miles, of which Norway is one, are also able to exploit rights to resources on the shelf beyond the 200-mile limit.
Reflect previous international law
The rules on the High Seas by and large reflect previous international law, with the exception of the fishing provisions that give the coastal state rather greater rights than previously outside the 200 nautical mile limit. (These rights were additionally strengthened by the UN fish stocks treaty of 5 August 1995. This treaty implements and amplifies the Law of the Sea Convention’s provisions on migratory fish species.) The international seabed regime is an innovation in international law, granting rights of exploration for and exploitation of the resources of the seabed and its subsoil, outside national jurisdiction. This area and the resources related to it are the common heritage of mankind. New rules are introduced on marine scientific research. Even if all states’ right to conduct marine scientific research is upheld, the coastal state may demand the right of consent when the research is to take place in the exclusive economic zone or on the continental shelf of the coastal state. Such consent must normally be granted, but there exists a distinction between pure marine scientific research, which is to be permitted, and research into resources for commercial purposes, which can be regulated. Rules are promulgated for development and transfer of marine technology, and there is a declaration of principle that aims especially to strengthen developing countries’ ability to exploit the ocean and its resources.
Every year, generally in June, a meeting of the high contracting parties to the Law of the Sea Convention is held at UN Headquarters in New York.
The division of the Law of the Sea Convention into chapters. Of these, Parts V-VII and XII-XIV are of especial significance for Norway as a fishery nation.