Date of Award

1978

Degree Type

Major Paper

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Marine Affairs

Abstract

The oceans may be an alternative source of resource supply offering the opportunity for extensive practical uses. A number of ocean systems have been instituted to manage the exploitation of ocean resources including the practice of states to negotiate and enter into bilateral and multilateral agreements on a variety of ocean activities; but the complexities as well as the tendency of some of these ocean uses to generate extraterritorial effects, accentuate the need for a global response to alleviate these problems. Isolated individual national regulations and standards lack international uniformity to ensure adequate and rational utilization of the oceans and their resources. Adherence to the traditional interpretation of sovereignty by some nations is an obstacle to the implementation of truly international standards and a reasonable limitation should beplaced on the traditional concept of sovereignty with regards to those ocean activities identified as causing or capable of causing transnational problems. This study establishes and recognizes the inability of existing ocean regimes to provide uniform international standards and proposes as an alternative a comprehensive international ocean management machinery in the form of a World Ocean Management Authority (WOMA).

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