Fisheries Management in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction : The Impact of Ecosystem Based Law-Making

This book analyses the law-making of ecosystem-based fisheries management in marine areas beyond national jurisdiction as a post-development of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) so as to avoid stocks collapse and destruction of critical habitats, and increase the resilience of marine ecosystems. Traditional fisheries management – based on single-species – has proved to be inadequate to sustainably manage living resources, due to the highly complex structure of marine ecosystems. Recent developments in marine scientific research have indicated that the ecosystem-based approach, which takes into consideration the interdependence among species and their habitats, is the most appropriate way to sustainably manage marine living resources. Shifting from single-species approach to ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ) is extremely important, because species occurring in these regions are often more vulnerable to collapse than coastal species due to their biological characteristics. Fisheries Management in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction describes recent developments of the law of the sea in light of ecosystem approach to fisheries management (EBFM) and conservation of biodiversity in marine biodiversity. Author Daniela Diz Pereira Pinto analyzes this urgent subject in light of the United Nations General Assembly's recent mandate to initiate a process to improve upon the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, which includes the potential development of a multilateral agreement under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The monograph interprets states obligations under the current regime, identifies governance gaps, and provides a number of recommendations and best practices that could be incorporated into a new implementing agreement to UNCLOS. A historical overview of EBFM provides useful context for the future development of a more comprehensive legal regime. Ecosystem-based fisheries management International policy and legal framework Fishing practices in areas beyond national jurisdiction Partition of the oceans and the compatibility between EEZs and high-seas fisheries management Regional fisheries management organisations and the implementation of EBFM High-seas marine protected areas as an EBFM tool.