SEABED COMMISSION AGREES TO LOOK AT HIGH SEAS BIODIVERSITY

SEABED COMMISSION AGREES TO LOOK AT HIGH SEAS BIODIVERSITY

(Reissued as received.)

KINGSTON, 31 July (International Seabed Authority) -- The Legal and Technical Commission of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) agreed in Kingston this afternoon on steps to involve itself more closely in biodiversity issues relating to deep-sea mineral exploration and exploitation.

Summarizing three proposals that emerged from today’s discussion, the Vice-Chair, Frida Maria Armas Pfirter (Argentina), placed them in the context of the Commission’s ongoing task of drafting regulations to govern exploration for polymetallic crusts and sulphides in the international seabed area.

The first proposal calls for the Authority to convene an informational seminar next year, with participation by the Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) and other bodies.  The ODP is an international partnership of scientists and research institutions that provides a vast repository of geological and environmental information on the character of the ocean floor.  The seminar is to review information on genetic resources associated with deep-sea minerals.

The second proposal was for the Vice-Chair, in her capacity as a legal expert, to present an overview to the Commission, at next year’s session, on legal implications related to the management of high-seas biodiversity.  Thirdly, after the seminar and the legal presentation, the Commission would decide whether to take the further step of establishing a subgroup of its members to examine these environmental issues in greater detail. 

The 24-member expert body acted under an agenda item on the role of the Authority in relation to the management of high-seas biodiversity.  This is the first time such an item has been discussed by any ISA body, though several States have raised it during general discussions.  Yesterday (30 July), for example, Fiji, on behalf of the South Pacific Forum, told the Assembly that the Authority had a key role to play in international efforts to conserve and manage high-seas biodiversity.

The proposals approved today were made by Arne Bjørlykke (Norway), who cited the “intimate relationship between mineral resources and biological ecosystems”, and the need for the Commission, in advising the Authority, to examine both scientific and legal perspectives.

The results of today’s discussion on biodiversity will be reported next week to the ISA Council, along with the other work of the Commission at this session.  The Commission’s main task this year has been its work on the regulations relating to crusts and sulphides.

Members stressed the need to use all means possible to gather information on deep-sea biodiversity, noting that much material was available from research organizations.  In this regard, the Authority was urged to collaborate more closely with InterRidge, a 10-nation initiative designed to encourage dissemination of scientific information on all aspects of ocean ridge and crest research. 

One member suggested four areas of the Authority’s responsibility with regard to deep-sea biodiversity:  where mineralization is influenced by biological activity, where mining operations might impact the marine environment, the need to accommodate multiple uses of the seafloor and the Authority’s responsibility to encourage marine scientific research.   

Several members called particular attention to the fragility of the environment around hydrothermal vents, the source of polymetallic sulphides and habitat of exotic life forms of great interest to scientists and bioprospectors.  It was pointed out that traces of life were found everywhere in the deep biosphere, making it difficult to distinguish between life organisms and mineral resources.

Another member emphasized the need to provide clear objectives for the seminar, which, he added, should focus on moving forward the work of the Commission.  To this end, one member was charged with proposing a framework to guide the ISA secretariat in its preparations. 

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