Chapter 23
North East Atlantic Marine Protected Areas
Beyond National Jurisdiction. Geographical
and Material Scope
Marta Sobrido-Prieto
Abstract An intergovernmental conference is working to prepare the text of an
international legally binding instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of
marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJs). One topic is areabased management tools, including marine protected areas (MPAs). Pending the
outcome of the conference, and as the future treaty is not to undermine existing
relevant legal instruments, frameworks or bodies, this chapter focuses on the main
features of the current experience in the North East Atlantic from a jurisdictional
point of view. MPAs mainly cover areas under national jurisdiction, but also ABNJs
in the Antarctic and North East Atlantic, both in the context of international
organisations/agreements. Given the special status of Antarctica, the North East
Atlantic experience provides a better reference. Some of the MPAs designated
under the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the NorthEast Atlantic (OSPAR Convention) cover the deep seabed. OSPAR collaborates
with other relevant international organisations to enhance the overall effectiveness of
MPAs. And certain OSPAR coastal states are very attuned to any opportunity to
demand a special position in relation to the ABNJs located next to their territory.
This research was conducted within the framework of the project “Proceso de negociación
internacional para la conservación de la biodiversidad marina en las aguas más allá de la
jurisdicción de los Estados”, funded by the Spanish Government (DER2016-78979-R), and the
Mobility Programme “Iacobus V”, funded by the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation
Galicia-Norte Portugal. The author would like to thank Professor Marta Chantal Ribeiro for all
her help and assistance during the author’s stay at the Faculty of Law of the Universidade do
Porto (Portugal).
M. Sobrido-Prieto (*)
University of A Coruña, Faculty of Law, A Coruña, Spain
e-mail: marta.sobrido@udc.es
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
M. C. Ribeiro et al. (eds.), Global Challenges and the Law of the Sea,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42671-2_23
443
North East Atlantic Marine Protected Areas
Beyond National Jurisdiction. Geographical
and Material Scope
Marta Sobrido-Prieto
Abstract An intergovernmental conference is working to prepare the text of an
international legally binding instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of
marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJs). One topic is areabased management tools, including marine protected areas (MPAs). Pending the
outcome of the conference, and as the future treaty is not to undermine existing
relevant legal instruments, frameworks or bodies, this chapter focuses on the main
features of the current experience in the North East Atlantic from a jurisdictional
point of view. MPAs mainly cover areas under national jurisdiction, but also ABNJs
in the Antarctic and North East Atlantic, both in the context of international
organisations/agreements. Given the special status of Antarctica, the North East
Atlantic experience provides a better reference. Some of the MPAs designated
under the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the NorthEast Atlantic (OSPAR Convention) cover the deep seabed. OSPAR collaborates
with other relevant international organisations to enhance the overall effectiveness of
MPAs. And certain OSPAR coastal states are very attuned to any opportunity to
demand a special position in relation to the ABNJs located next to their territory.
This research was conducted within the framework of the project “Proceso de negociación
internacional para la conservación de la biodiversidad marina en las aguas más allá de la
jurisdicción de los Estados”, funded by the Spanish Government (DER2016-78979-R), and the
Mobility Programme “Iacobus V”, funded by the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation
Galicia-Norte Portugal. The author would like to thank Professor Marta Chantal Ribeiro for all
her help and assistance during the author’s stay at the Faculty of Law of the Universidade do
Porto (Portugal).
M. Sobrido-Prieto (*)
University of A Coruña, Faculty of Law, A Coruña, Spain
e-mail: marta.sobrido@udc.es
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
M. C. Ribeiro et al. (eds.), Global Challenges and the Law of the Sea,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42671-2_23
443