Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the exclusive economic zone and in an area beyond and adjacent to it [strad-
dling stocks]', highly migratory species (such as tuna), anadromous stocks (such
as salmon that spawn in rivers but live most of their lives in the sea), and
catadromous species (such as eel that spawn in the sea but live most of their
lives in inland waterways).
The innovative Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the
UNCLOS for the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks
and Highly Migratory Fish Stock s 11 was negotiated and adopted in 1995.
It aims at promoting the management of fi sh species that occur in both exclu-
sive economic zones and in the high seas, according to the precautionary
principle and the ecosystem approach. Coastal states and those fi shing in the
region have a duty to establish regional organizations for fi sheries manage-
ment; a signifi cant number of such organizations have been established. The
Commission used to administer the fi sheries in the Baltic Sea and the Belts. 12
As the EU has exclusive jurisdiction over the regulation of fi shing, this body
became redundant when all the Baltic coastal states except Russia became
members of the EU.
A great number of regional and bilateral fi shing agreements have been
concluded, covering most sea areas.
Protection of international watercourses
Rivers have been regulated by international law for some time because they
often form the natural boundaries between states and they frequently fl ow
through the territories of several states. Environmental regulation related to
rivers developed relatively early; and in 1966 the International Law Association
(ILA) adopted the Helsinki Rules which refl ected the customary law of the
time. The principles of equity in the utilization of a river which the ILA
recorded were especially widely accepted by the international community.
Riparian states have over their history faced similar challenges, which have
created similar approaches to environmental protection. Experience shows
that upstream states do not always consider the interests and rights of down-
stream states; rivers only fl ow in one direction, and it can be politically diffi cult
for the upstream states to make concessions in their river policies in the interests
of the downstream states if these are seen to create burdens on a state's own
population or economic interests.
Most international river agreements apply to single river areas, but regional
and even global agreements have also been made to promote the sustainable
management of transboundary inland waterways. The UN Economic
Commission for Europe and the UN International Law Commission have
both played important roles in this work.
The Helsinki Convention of 1992 on the protection of watercourses 13
contains general principles, and obligates the parties to increase cooperation
in relation to international waterways. The International Law Commission
prepared the Convention on the Law of the Non-navigational Uses of
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search