International cooperation around the North Sea basin |
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Authors: | D Tromp W Zevenboom A Stolk |
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Institution: | (1) RWS-North Sea Directorate, P.O. Box 5907, 2280 HV Rijswijk, The Netherlands;(2) Present address: National Institute for Coastal and Marine Management/RIKZ, P.O. Box 20907, 2500 EX, The Hague, The Netherlands |
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Abstract: | During the past 25 years, the management of marine ecosystems has evolved significantly. Due to the increased use of the sea
and the increased awareness of adverse impacts of certain human activities in and around the sea, which has been a common
good for a long time—‘Mare Liberum’—an international and integrated approach has become increasingly important to regulate
the use of our common seas.
From the late 1960s onwards, intergovernmental meetings have taken place in order to tackle the problems of international
pollution of seas and oceans. One reason for this attention was the Torrey Canyon accident in 1967, which triggered the start
of the Bonn Agreement in 1969 for coordinating the combat mission against oil and chemical spills in the North Sea.
After the 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm, with the involvement of the European Union,
the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), other regional and
global Conventions, as well as the North Sea Ministerial Conferences were established.
These continuous international efforts have resulted in a considerable reduction of the input of certain contaminants and
of nutrients (in particular phosphate) into the marine environment. However, not all problems have yet been solve. The North
Sea Ministers agreed at the Conference in Esbjerg (1995) to aim at a reduction of the input of all hazardous substances within
one generation, in order to reach the goal of negligible risks of pollution. Furthermore, there is a general aim to minimize
adverse effects of disturbing activities. The challenge, now and in the future, is to find a balance between economic development
and environmental protection of our international marine waters aiming at a sustainable development of the marine resources
by employing scientifically based measures and, in situations where there are reasonable grounds for concern but no conclusive
links between cause and problem, applying the precautionary principle with respect to pollution and disturbing activities. |
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Keywords: | Contaminant Disturbance International Convention Marine Ecosystem Northeast Atlantic Pollution |
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