Recent News
The editors argue that "[o]n the evidence of the first response to an application for seabed mining, those seeking consent for economic activity in the 200-mile zone will have to clear a very high hurdle" due to the significant environmental unknowns involved.
[ More ]
The author reviews the progress made at the recent 'Our Ocean' summit and argues that further progress will require U.S. leadership, starting with ratifying UNCLOS.
[ More ]A project to mine undersea iron ore deposits off the New Zealand coast has been rejected because of uncertainty about the environmental effects of the project, the country’s Environmental Protection Authority said on Wednesday.
[ More ]Our planet's crown of Arctic sea ice may disappear for entire summers by midcentury as the North Pole warms, opening up brand-new opportunities to mine rich stores of oil, gas, and coveted mineral deposits, including rare earth metals used in cell phones. The emerging situation is unprecedented: There are legal and policy questions about how conflicts over national boundaries, concerns about environmental damage, and threats to the well-being of indigenous peoples will be handled.
[ More ]
Oil and gas resources in the Arctic are an important resource to guarantee China's sustained economic growth and the country should actively look at developing it, state media on Wednesday cited a Chinese military think-tank as saying.
[ More ]
Today President Obama announced plans to expand the boundaries of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, a marine reserve created by George W. Bush in 2009. The final perimeter has not yet been determined, but maritime law allows the U.S. to control up to 200 nautical miles away from the shore.
[ More ]President Obama announced a series of measures Tuesday to protect parts of the world’s oceans, including the creation of a marine sanctuary that would close a large swath of the central Pacific to fishing and energy development.
[ More ]
New Zealand decides this week whether to approve an underwater iron-ore operation that would likely become the world's first commercial metals mine at the bottom of the sea.
[ More ]
The recent conclusion of negotiations over maritime boundaries between Indonesia and the Philippines was a significant development for the two ASEAN member states and it holds important lessons for all claimant states over disputed waters in the South China Sea.
[ More ]Oceana is calling on EU citizens to help push for the suspension of the European Commission’s plans to develop deep-sea mining operations.
[ More ]