Suggested Draft High Seas Implementing Agreement for the Conservation and Management of the Marine Environment

The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is now 25 years old. The time has come to consider the establishment of a new implementing agreement under UNCLOS. Such an implementing agreement would be comprehensive and legally binding, and build upon the existing provisions of UNCLOS, providing a clear mandate to protect biodiversity on the high seas, based on the precautionary principle and ecosystem-based management for the next 25 years and beyond. The elements of this text provide a model implementing agreement for the conservation and management articles of UNCLOS with respect to biodiversity on the high seas.

Download Document