Anshu Bansal, Research Associate<\/b><\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever we do, the ocean will survive in one way or another. What is more problematic is whether we shall preserve it in a state that ensures humanity\u2019s survival and well<\/i>\u2010<\/i>being\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n
Federico Mayor, Director General, UNESCO<\/p>\n
The marine environment includes the waters of seas and estuaries, the seabed and its subsoils, and all marine wildlife and its sea and coastal habitats. It constitutes a fund of resources which can be used to achieve greater economic potential, so its protection in seeking to revitalise its economy ((Protecting and conserving the Marine environment,<\/i> European Commission (2006).)). The marine environment is a vital resource for life on Earth. Marine ecosystems\u00a0 perform\u00a0 a\u00a0 number\u00a0 of\u00a0 key\u00a0 environmental\u00a0 functions\u00a0 \u2014\u00a0 they\u00a0 regulate the climate, prevent erosion, accumulate and distribute solar energy, absorb carbon dioxide, and maintain biological control ((Ibid.<\/i>)).<\/p>\n
The world\u2019s oceans are not only the domain of food for human being but also the legitimate concern of marine transport, offshore extraction of oil, gas and other minerals, climate control and recreation. Marine fisheries account for 85% of the global fish catch. Maritime shipping is involved in the transport of over 80% of the world\u2019s merchandise trade ((A. N. Subramanian, Introduction: Marine Environment.<\/i>)).<\/p>\n
Though the seas cover the majority of our planet\u2019s surface, far less is known about the biodiversity of marine environments then that of terrestrial systems ((Ormond (1997).)). The marine environment is also a great contributor to economic prosperity, social well-being and quality of life. Irish and Norse examined all 742 papers published in the journal Conservation Biology and found that only 5% focused on marine ecosystems and species, compared with 67% on terrestrial and 6% on freshwater ((Murphy and Duffus (1996).)). As a result of this disparity, marine conservation biology severely lags behind the terrestrial counterpart, and this gap of knowledge poses major problems for conservation of marine biodiversity and must be addressed ((Ibid<\/i>)).<\/p>\n
International Perspective to Marine Environment<\/b><\/p>\n
Being a common heritage of mankind, marine resources are also subjected to international Conventions. For instance, many of Europe\u2019s regional seas are the subject of international conventions. Some of the Conventions are: The 1992 OSPAR Convention which regulate and control marine pollution in the North Sea and North Atlantic, the Helsinki Commission on the protection of the Baltic Sea (Helcom) and the Barcelona Convention on the protection of the Mediterranean Sea. A number of these have made excellent contributions to marine protection, but they have few enforcement powers ((Ibid.<\/i>)). The main reason for the failure of some of these conventions rests in the fact that they did not had effective enforcement mechanism. The most important legislation addressing the increasing problem of marine pollution is probably the 1978 Protocol to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), which recognised that vessels present a significant and controllable source of pollution into the marine environment [Lentz, 1987] ((Josee G.B. Derraik, The pollution of the marine environment by plastic debris: a review, Marine Pollution Bulletin 44 (2002) 842\u2013852)).<\/p>\n
International Management Regimes for Marine Environment <\/b><\/p>\n
To address the complexity of management regimes, it is essential to develop a methodology and collect the information required for the systematic valuation of ocean assets and services.\u00a0 At\u00a0 the\u00a0 2002\u00a0 World\u00a0 Summit\u00a0 on\u00a0 Sustainable\u00a0 Development\u00a0 (WSSD)\u00a0 the international\u00a0 community\u00a0 agreed\u00a0 to\u00a0 \u201cestablish\u00a0 by\u00a0 2004\u00a0 a\u00a0 regular\u00a0 process under\u00a0 the\u00a0 United\u00a0 Nations\u00a0 for\u00a0 global\u00a0 reporting\u00a0 and\u00a0 assessment\u00a0 of\u00a0 the\u00a0 state of the marine environment, including socio-economic aspects building on existing regional assessments ((Symphony of the seas , The Marine Environment, The magazine of the UNEP (December,2007).)).\u201d The 2004 target proved unrealistic, but in 2005 the\u00a0 General\u00a0 Assembly\u00a0 launched\u00a0 an \u201cassessment\u00a0 of\u00a0 assessments\u201d\u00a0 (AoA)\u00a0 as\u00a0 a\u00a0 preparatory stage for the \u2018regular process\u2019, as it is called ((Ibid<\/i>)).<\/p>\n
In February 2004, IMO adopted the Ballast Water Management Convention, addressing the immense damage that can be caused by microscopic aquatic life\u00a0 transported\u00a0 around\u00a0 the\u00a0 world\u00a0 in\u00a0 this\u00a0 way\u00a0 and\u00a0 deposited\u00a0 in\u00a0 alien\u00a0 local ecosystems, threatening to disrupt their delicate balance ((Conrad, Flexible Instrument.)). Most countries recognize the value of their coastal and marine biodiversity and have gazetted marine and wetland protected areas to ensure their sustainability ((UNEP- WCMC (2000).)).<\/p>\n
At the global level, the Law of the Sea Convention, the central regime for ocean governance, has established a new treaty system of ocean institutions. Under the umbrella of the convention, a number of \u2018sub\u2010regimes\u2019 can be identified, each of which deals with specialized matters. The most important of these sub\u2010regimes cover ((A. N. Subramanian, Introduction: Marine Environment<\/i>)):<\/p>\n Major Threat To Marine Biodiversity<\/b><\/p>\n There are several causes of marine pollution, such as:<\/p>\n (a)\u00a0 Dumping of wastes at sea ((Art 1(1)(5)(a) 1982 Law of the Sea Convention.)).<\/p>\n (b) From land-based sources e.g. untreated sewage and the dumping of wastes which reach the sea and oceans through rivers and streams, fumes from power plants and factories, etc.;<\/p>\n (c)\u00a0 Pollution from ships during their voyages;<\/p>\n (d) Pollution from seabed activities i.e. exploration of mineral resources in the seabed ((Art\u00a0 43\u00a0 1982\u00a0 Law\u00a0 of\u00a0 the\u00a0 Sea\u00a0 Convention,\u00a0 \u201cUser\u00a0 States\u00a0 and\u00a0 States\u00a0 bordering\u00a0 a\u00a0 strait\u00a0 should\u00a0 by agreement co-operate)).<\/p>\n It has also been established that one of the major contributor in pollution concerning marine biodiversity relates to disposing waste in marine environment. One among them is the threat posed by Plastic debris. There are overwhelming evidence that plastic pollution is a threat to marine biodiversity, already at risk from overfishing, climate change and other forms of anthropogenic disturbance. Due to the long life of plastics on marine ecosystems, it is imperative that severe measures are taken to address the problem at both international and national levels, since even if the production and disposal of plastics suddenly stopped, the existing debris would continue to harm marine life for many decades ((Josee G.B. Derraik, The Pollution Of The Marine Environment By Plastic Debris: A Review,<\/i> Marine Pollution Bulletin 44 (2002) 842\u2013852.\u00a0 )).<\/p>\n There have been nevertheless some attempts to promote the conservation of the world\u2019s oceans through international legislation, such as the establishment of the 1972 Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping Wastes and Other Matter [the London dumping Convention or LDC] ((Ibid.<\/i>)).<\/p>\n In addition to plastic debris, activities such as fishing and extracting aggregates, oil and gas all affect our marine environment. We have damaged many habitats, for example by some fishing methods and by boat anchor chains dragging through seagrass beds ((Ibid.<\/i>)). Pressures from commercial activities have caused a decline in a number of species, including spiny dogfish and porbeagle and even extinctions, for example of the angel shark in parts of UK waters.<\/p>\n An estimated 70% of the world\u2019s fish stocks are already being exploited at or beyond sustainable limits, but fishing generally continues unabated despite extensive regulatory arrangements for their management ((Supra <\/i>note 3.)). Also, Oil spill is one of the major threat. The oil spill from the\u00a0 Erikaalong the French coast in December 1999, which was followed by two other cases of sinking ships and the release of hazardous substances, namely the Kristal and the Baku ((The Times Editorial, Rough Seas for Maltese Flag, 10th<\/sup> March 2001.)).<\/p>\n Conclusion and Recommendation<\/b><\/p>\n The\u00a0 marine\u00a0 environment\u00a0 is\u00a0 faced\u00a0 with\u00a0 a\u00a0 number\u00a0 of\u00a0 increasingly\u00a0 severe threats.\u00a0 These include loss or degradation of biodiversity and changes in its structures, loss of habitats, contamination from dangerous substances, and the impacts of climate change ((Supra <\/i>note 4)). Coastal and marine resources are being vanished and damaged by increase in marine human activities. This leads to deteriorating biodiversity in such a way that livelihood opportunities are decreasing.<\/p>\n In order to deal with the problem, UK Marine Bill can be referred. In UK, Marine Bill was drafted which provided a number of tools to improve our marine environment. For instance, Marine Conservation Zones will provide a mechanism to protect nationally important species and habitats. Marine planning will help us to find space for the competing range of activities in our seas, for example fishing, wind farms and gravel extraction and manage them in a holistic way. The Marine Management Organisation will regulate marine activities and help enforce laws to protect the marine environment ((Jonathan Shaw, Protecting Our Marine Environment Through The Marine Bill<\/i>, Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.)).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Anshu Bansal, Research Associate \u201cWhatever we do, the ocean will survive in one way or another. 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