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Marine conservation

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea establishes guidelines for all uses of the oceans' resources and establishes a comprehensive regime of law and order in the world's oceans and seas. On December 10th, 1982, the Convention was made available for signature at Montego Bay, Jamaica. More than 150 nations representing all world regions, all legal and political systems, and the full range of socio-economic development participated. The Convention introduced new legal concepts, addressed new issues, and combined the conventional norms for the usage of the oceans into one document. The Convention also established the framework for furthering the study of particular facets of maritime law. On November 16, 1994, the Convention came into effect in line with article 308. Today, it is the widely acknowledged system in charge of resolving all matters regarding the law of the sea. The Convention regulates all facets of ocean space, including delimitation, environmental control, marine scientific research, economic and commercial activity, transfer of technology, and the resolution of disputes pertaining to ocean issues. It has 320 articles and nine annexes.

Additionally, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) works to safeguard oceans and seas and encourage the wise use of marine resources, particularly through its Regional Seas Program. The sole international legal foundation for regional ocean and sea protection is the Regional Seas Conventions and Action Plans. The Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities was also established by UNEP. The relationship between terrestrial, freshwater, coastal, and marine ecosystems is directly addressed by it, which makes it the only international intergovernmental instrument to do so. Through the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) organizes programs in marine research, observation systems, hazard mitigation, and better managing ocean and coastal ecosystems.

At the 1998 Oslo and Paris Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic, environmental ministers from 15 Northeast Atlantic states and members of the European Commission agreed to identify marine species, habitats, and ecosystems that need protection and to "promote the establishment of a network of marine protected areas to ensure the sustainable use, protection, and conservation of marine biological diversity .”