Bernaerts' Guide _UNCLOS 1982
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 Book page 48-49

SUBMARINE CABLES AND PIPELINES
Section: Part VII, Articles 86-120

Fisheries on the High Seas - UNCLOS 1982The freedom to lay submarine cables and pipelines on the bed of the high seas beyond the continental shelf is guaranteed,[1] but states must have due regard for cables and pipelines already in position.[2] The provisions serve to protect such installations and require states to implement laws and regulations as follows:

1) Injury or obstruction of installations done wilfully, through culpable negligence, or intentionally are to be treated as punishable offences, unless the act was committed in a distress situation;[3]

2) Cable or pipeline owners who, in laying or repairing that cable or pipeline, cause damage to or break another cable or pipeline are to bear the costs of repair;[4]

3) Owners of cables or pipelines are to indemnify owners of ships who have sacrificed equipment in order to avoid damage to a cable or pipeline.[5]

FISHERIES ON THE HIGH SEAS
Section: Part VII, Articles 86-120

Until the middle of this century, the traditional international law of fisheries provided for a territorial sea of three nautical miles and the remainder of the oceans, the high seas, for which there was freedom of fishing. Although the Convention retains freedom of fishing on the high seas,[6] the results are considerably different.

Of greatest impact is the fact that the coastal states have the right to establish an exclusive economic zone which extends for 200 nautical miles from the coast[7] within which they have fishing rights.[8] About 90% of the commercially exploitable fish stocks can be found in such zones if they are universally established.

[1] Art. 112; 87 Subpara. 1(c), [2] Art. 112, Para . 2; Art. 79, Para . 5, 
[3] Art. 113,   
[4] Art. 114 ,   
[5] Art. 115, 

[6] Art. 87, Subpara. 1(e) ,    [7] Art. 57,
[8]
Art. 56, Subpara. 1 (a),   [9] Art. 117, 119, 120,  
[10]
Art. 117, 119, 120,  
[11]
Art. 119, 61,  

[12] Art. 119, Para . 3,   
[13] Art. 116, Subpara. (b); 63, Para . 2; 64-67,   
[14] Art. 64,   
[15] Art. 117,     
[16] Art. 118

 Consequently, the Convention requires measures for the high seas supplementary to those for the exclusive economic zone. These measures can be summarized as conservation measures implemented by the state for its nationals[9] and measures for co-operation between the states for conservation and management of resources in the high seas.[10] The guidelines, which apply for determining allowable catch and establishing conservation measures, are similar to those for the coastal states in their exclusive economic zones;[11] furthermore, such measures must avoid the discrimination of fishermen of any other state.[12] States must also have due regard for stocks and species which move from coastal state zones to the high seas and back and consider whether these stocks are subject to coastal state conservation and management measures[13]. In particular, coastal states and states concerned with fishing on the high seas are to co-operate in respect to highly migratory species[14] listed in Annex I.:  (details HERE)

The limited resources of the high seas, together with the various measures to be taken, make it essential to reach a balance between the conflicting principles of freedom of fishing and co­operative conservation and management of the resources of the high seas.[15] The Convention provides for the establishment of subregional or regional fisheries organizations to achieve this end.[16]  

[1] Art. 112; 87 Subpara. 1(c), [2] Art. 112, Para . 2; Art. 79, Para . 5,  [3] Art. 113,   [4] Art. 114 [5] Art. 115,   [6] Art. 87, Subpara. 1(e) ,    [7] Art. 57, [8] Art. 56, Subpara. 1 (a),   [9] Art. 117, 119, 120,   [10] Art. 117, 119, 120,   [11] Art. 119, 61,   [12] Art. 119, Para . 3,   [13] Art. 116, Subpara. (b); 63, Para . 2; 64-67,   [14] Art. 64,   [15] Art. 117,     [16] Art. 118 

Further Readings :  
- Cables and Pipelines. (Commentary) 
 
- Fisheries. (Commentary)

Next page 50-51

Book published:
1988 Fairplay/UK,
2005 (reprint) by

Trafford Publishing,
1663 Liberty Drive Suite 200
Bloomington, IN 47403, Canada.

 
329 pages, ISBN 1-4120-7665-x;


Available via online-contributer 


 
 

            

 


 
Online – Edition
1988/2006

 
Bernaerts' Guide to the 
1982 United Nations
Convention on the Law of the Sea

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Bernaerts Guide -UNCLOS 1982

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Preface of the reprint in 2005

More than 15 years ago FAIRPLAY PUBLICATIONS Ltd, Coulsdon, Surrey, England, published the book "Bernaerts' Guide to the Law of the Sea - The 1982 United Nations Convention". The guiding potential of the book to find access to the Law of the Sea Convention is still given. Internet technology and publishing on demand invite to provide the interested reader and researcher with this tool again. Only the Status of the Convention (ratification etc) has been updated and instead of the Final Act, the book edition includes the "Agreement relating to the Implementation of Part XI of the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea" of 1994. The corresponding web site neither includes the text of the 1982 Convention, nor the Agreement of 1994. The thorough Index of the 1988 edition is reproduced without changes.
Arnd Bernaerts, October 2005,
Comments 1988-1990
___"an invaluable guide to the understanding and implementation of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea"
Satya N. Nandan, U.N. Undersecretay, in: Book Foreword, 1988
__"clearly presented" R.R. Churchill, in: Maritime Policy & Management 1989, p. 340
__"the (book's) concept, which is so wonderful simple, is exactly the factor which makes the book so useful for both the novice as well as the person with extensive experience"
M. Bonefeld, in: Verfassung und Recht, 1989, pp. 83-85
__"the work contains much useful background information…." R.W. Bentham, in: Journal of Energy & Natural Resource Law, 1989, p. 336
__"Bernaerts has saved us a struggle" JG, in: Fairplay Shipping Weekly Magazin, 13th October 1988, p. 33
__"this is probably the best edition on the Convention to put into the hands of students"
A.V. Lowe, in: Int'l and Comparative Law Quarterly 1990, p. 16
__"it will be an invaluable reference tool and should sit on the book shelves of policy makers and all others who are involved in maritime matters"
Vivian I. Forbes, in: The Indian Ocean Review, May 1990, p.10

Bernaerts’s Guide to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

FOREWORD of the 1988 edition
by Satya N. Nandan
 
Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations for the Law of the Sea Office for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea

Revolutionary changes have taken place in the International Law of the Sea since 1945. The process of change was accelerated in the last two decades by the convening in 1973 of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. The protracted negotiations, spanning over a decade, culminated in the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1982. By 9 December 1984, the closing date for signature, 159 signatures were appended to the Convention, the largest number for any such multilateral instrument in the history of international relations.

The Convention, which was adopted as a comprehensive package, introduced a new equity in the relationship among states with respect to the uses of the ocean and the allocation of its resources. It deals, inter alia, with sovereignty and jurisdiction of states, navigation and marine transport, over flight of aircraft, marine pollution, marine scientific research, marine technology, conservation and exploitation of marine living resources, the development and-exploitation of marine non-living resources in national and international areas, and unique provisions dealing with the settlement of disputes concerning the interpretation and application of the new regime.

There is no doubt that as we approach the 21st century, more and more attention will be paid to the uses of the oceans and the development of their resources. It is important, therefore, that these developments should take place within a widely accepted legal framework so that there is certainty as to the rights and obligations of all states. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea provides that framework. It establishes a standard for the conduct of states in maritime matters. It is thus a major instrument for preventing conflicts among states.

The convention and its annexes contain over 400 articles. For many it may be a formidable undertaking to grasp the substance and structure of it without making a considerable investment in time and energy. Mr Bernaerts' guide, therefore, is a welcome addition to the growing body of literature on the convention. It provides a most useful reference tool which will benefit administrators and policy makers, as well as scholars. It makes the convention accessible to the uninitiated and refreshes, at a glance, the memories of the initiated. With meticulous references and graphic presentations of the provisions of the convention, Mr Bernaerts has given to the international community an invaluable guide to the understanding and implementation of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
April 1988


PREFACE (extract) of the 1988 edition

 
The reader will be aware that the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is the first constitution of the oceans, a ground-breaking document in many respects. He or she might also have made the discovery that the full text of the Convention is immediately accessible only to experts. If the Convention were only a treaty consisting of straightforward technical regulatory provisions, it could be left to them with a clear conscience. But the Convention is to a large extent a political document and, as such, is expected to influence significantly the development of relations among the states in the world community; for this reason, a wide-spread knowledge of the scope, goals, and regulatory framework of the Convention can only serve to further the aims of the document and would surely follow the intentions of the many men and women who made this Convention their life-work, such as Arvid Pardo (Malta), Hamilton Shirtey Amerasinghe (Sri Lanka), Tommy T. B. Koh (Singapore), and Satya N. Nandan (Fiji), to name only a few of the hundreds who worked on the preparation of this Convention.
 
As the reader uses the Guide (Part II), he will find that many provisions of the Convention are much easier to understand if one knows the basic framework within which a particular regulation is placed. The Guide aims to provide this framework, with reference to the text of the Convention and, in addition, t& the supporting Commentary of Part III, which describes the overall context of the major terms arid concepts. The Introduction of Part I sketches the historical background of the Convention and some of the general effects. A detailed index at the end of the book will be of assistance in finding specific subjects.

 

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