Abstract
Climate change and dramatic change to ocean ecosystems are two of the leading indicators of the proposed ‘Anthropocene’ epoch. As knowledge of feedbacks between climate change and damage to ocean ecosystems has improved, the case for addressing these interrelated challenges concurrently has strengthened. This chapter begins by reviewing the relationship between climate change and the state of the ocean as explained in recent scientific publications. It proceeds from this to summarise how this ocean-climate nexus is addressed in current and developing international law, before focusing on three particular examples: first, regulation of international shipping emissions; second, management of coastal ecosystems (‘blue carbon’); and third, the current negotiation on a new treaty to protect the high seas. These three examples illustrate the diversity of regulation undertaken within a four-square matrix of processes under the Climate Convention, or under the Law of the Sea Convention, which are based on either mandatory commitments or non-binding facilitative measures. The chapter concludes that there are further opportunities to address ocean-climate feedbacks in a targeted and timely manner, including through additional linkages between UNFCCC- and UNCLOS-based processes.
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Notes
- 1.
Most relevantly, Steffen and colleagues warn that the planetary boundary of ocean acidification ‘is intimately linked with one of the control variables, CO2, for the climate change [planetary boundary]’.
- 2.
‘All Parties, taking into account their common but differentiated responsibilities and their specific national and regional development priorities, objectives and circumstances, shall: … (d) Promote sustainable management, and promote and cooperate in the conservation and enhancement, as appropriate, of sinks and reservoirs of all greenhouse gases not controlled by the Montreal Protocol, including … oceans’. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, FCCC/INFORMAL/84, 1992, Article 4(1).
- 3.
‘We stress the importance of the conservation and sustainable use of the oceans and seas and of their resources for sustainable development … while at the same time protecting biodiversity and the marine environment and addressing the impacts of climate change. We therefore commit to protect, and restore, the health, productivity and resilience of oceans and marine ecosystems, and to maintain their biodiversity…’ ‘The Future We Want’, A/RES/66/288, 2012, paragraph 158.
- 4.
The same language as in ‘The Future We Want’ paragraph 158 is used at Draft resolution submitted by the President of the General Assembly, Addis Ababa Action Agenda of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, A/69/L.82, 23 July 2015, Annex, paragraph 64.
- 5.
Paris Agreement (2015, entered force 2016), preambular recital 13.
- 6.
UNCLOS, Art. 192.
- 7.
Ibid, Art. 194(1).
- 8.
Ibid, Art. 194(5).
- 9.
Ibid, Art. 56.
- 10.
UNCLOS, Art. 121.
- 11.
Ibid, Art. 13.
- 12.
For a comprehensive assessment of these challenges and potential responses, see the work of the International Law Association’s Committee on International Law and Sea Level Rise: http://www.ila-hq.org/index.php/committees.
- 13.
UNCLOS, Art. 234.
- 14.
COP 9 Decision IX/16: Biodiversity and climate change, UNEP/CBD/COP/DEC/IX/16, 9 October 2008.
- 15.
FCCC/CP/1995/7/Add.1, Decision 4/CP.1, paragraph 1(f) (6 June 1995).
- 16.
For a summary of this work program, see http://unfccc.int/methods/emissions_from_intl_transport/items/1057.php.
- 17.
‘Mandatory energy efficiency measures for international shipping adopted at IMO environment meeting’, Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC)—62nd session: 11–15 July 2011, Briefing: 42, July 15, 2011, International Maritime Organization, http://www.imo.org/en/MediaCentre/PressBriefings/Pages/42-mepc-ghg.aspx#.VmVszXprurU. Accessed 7 December 2015.
- 18.
“Funding agreed for Global Maritime Energy Efficiency Partnerships Project (GloMEEP)’', Briefing: 35, 27/07/2015, International Maritime Organization, http://www.imo.org/en/MediaCentre/PressBriefings/Pages/35-glomeep-signing.aspx. Accessed 7 December 2015.
- 19.
Resolution MEPC.304(72), Initial IMO Strategy on Reduction of GHG Emissions from Ships, Adopted on 13 April 2018, par. 3.1.
- 20.
UNCLOS, Art. 3.
- 21.
Report on the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice on its thirty-third session, held in Cancun from 30 November to 4 December 2010, FCCC/SBSTA/2010/13, paragraph 72, 1 March 2011.
- 22.
CDM Methodology Booklet, 4.3 Methodologies for Large-Scale A/R CDM Project Activities, AR-AM0014 Afforestation and reforestation of degraded mangrove habitats, November 2015; Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), https://cdm.unfccc.int/. Accessed 5 December 2015.
- 23.
National Adaptation Programmes of Action, Index of NAPA Projects by Sector, UNFCCC, May 2013, http://unfccc.int/files/cooperation_support/least_developed_countries_portal/napa_priorities_database/application/pdf/napa_index_by_sector.pdf. Accessed 5 December 2015.
- 24.
Coastal Zones, Climate Technology Centre and Network, https://www.ctc-n.org/sectors/coastal-zones. Accessed 7 December 2015.
- 25.
Paris Agreement, Art. 4.2.
- 26.
For example, India has submitted a proposal which would include financing for conservation, restoration and effective management of blue carbon ecosystems. However, this proposal was to be considered at the GCF Board’s July 2018 meeting, at which no funding proposals or policies were approved owing to a deadlocked Board. Consideration of funding proposals – Addendum IV: Funding proposal package for FP085, Green Climate Fund, GCF/B.20/10/Add.04, 8 June 2018.
- 27.
The Blue Carbon Initiative, http://thebluecarboninitiative.org. Accessed 7 December 2015.
- 28.
Blue Forests, http://www.gefblueforests.com. Accessed 7 December 2015.
- 29.
UN General Assembly, Resolution 69/292, A/RES/69/292, 6 July 2015, paragraph 1.
- 30.
Ibid, paragraph 1(a).
- 31.
For example, in the Co-Chairs’ summary of discussions of the Working Group established by Resolution 66/231, it is recorded that ‘[s]ome delegations noted that anthropogenic threats to marine biodiversity, including as a result of climate change … had continued to increase in areas both within and beyond national jurisdiction’. A/66/119, annex, paragraph 8 (30 June 2011). Also, in Resolution 69/245 (2014), the General Assembly ‘[r]eiterat[es] its serious concern at the current and projected adverse effects of climate change and ocean acidification on the marine environment and marine biodiversity, and emphasizing the urgency of addressing these issues’; and ‘[e]xpress[es] concern that climate change continues to increase the severity and incidence of coral bleaching throughout tropical seas and weakens the ability of reefs to withstand ocean acidification, which could have serious and irreversible negative effects on marine organisms, particularly corals, as well as to withstand other pressures, including overfishing and pollution’.
- 32.
Report of the Preparatory Committee Established by General Assembly Resolution 69/292, UN Doc. A/AC.287/2017/PC.4/2 (July 31, 2017).
- 33.
Ibid, Section B.
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Minas, S. (2019). The Ocean-Climate Nexus in the Unfolding Anthropocene: Addressing Environmental Challenges Through International Law and Cooperation. In: Lim, M. (eds) Charting Environmental Law Futures in the Anthropocene. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-9065-4_7
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