<
https://theconversation.com/why-a-new-ruling-on-the-law-of-the-sea-and-climate-change-matters-for-australia-and-especially-our-island-neighbours-230682>
"The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea has found countries are
obliged to protect the oceans from climate change impacts under the law of the
sea.
The tribunal’s 21 judges issued a unanimous
Advisory Opinion on Climate Change
and International Law on May 21. It’s a landmark decision. For the first time
an international court or tribunal has laid out the extent of state obligations
to mitigate climate change under the
United Nations Convention on the Law of
the Sea.
These findings are significant because ocean and climate are fundamentally
linked. The global ocean covers 72% of Earth’s surface and holds 98% of its
water. The advisory opinion cited the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(IPCC) 2019 finding that the ocean had taken up 90% of the excess heat in the
climate system.
This ruling is important for Australia, which has sovereign rights over an area
of ocean – its maritime jurisdiction – almost 50% larger than its land area
(excluding Antarctica).
The ruling is vitally important for small island (but large ocean) states that
are most threatened by climate change impacts on the oceans."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
