Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
aid can be dispatched. This system also ensures provision of maritime safety information
(MSI), both meteorological and navigational, on a global basis at sea.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) 1992
(Article 5, Research and systematic observation) calls on the parties to '[s]upport and
further develop, as appropriate, international and intergovernmental programmes and net-
works or organizations aimed at defining, conducting, assessing and financing research,
data collection and systematic observation, taking into account the need to minimize du-
plication of effort'. In the following provision, the Convention calls on the parties to 'pro-
mote access to, and the exchange of, data and analyses thereof obtained from areas beyond
national jurisdiction'. While the Convention does not specify from where and how climate
data should be obtained, it appears to place some restrictions on the exchange of data and
related analysis in relation to the jurisdiction of the parties.
As a field that is in continuous evolution thanks to technological developments and
scientific advancements, MSR requires adaptive regulatory mechanisms to accompany its
development. As stated by one delegation at the second meeting of the United Nations
Open-ended Informal Consultative Process on Oceans and the Law of the Sea
(UNICPOLOS) (New York, 7-11 May 2001), which addressed, inter alia, marine science
and the development and transfer of marine technology: 'There is a risk that [the] marine
science regime, as defined in Part XIII of UNCLOS, will remain an empty shell unless
concrete policies and results-oriented initiatives are formulated and implemented' (United
UNICPOLOS have addressed issues related to MSR as applied to different domains and,
to give an example, it is noteworthy that at the 12th meeting (New York, 20-24 June 2011)
one expert emphasized 'the need to consider how the Convention could evolve to address
new issues such as a regime for marine genetic resources and the establishment of a net-
work of marine protected areas, as well as environmental impact assessments, capacity-
for attention to the need to adapt the existing regulatory framework provided by UNCLOS
to new needs and developments. Regarding MSR, the adoption of principles, codes of con-
