World Ocean Day today?:

Urgent need to modernize marine scientific research

Dr. Dan Malika Gunasekera, Attorney-at-Law

It has been over 30 years since the adoption of the Montego Bay Convention commonly known as the United Nation's Convention on the Law of the Sea and even prior to its origination, Sri Lanka was sighted as a key player of it in both political and implementation aspects. This was due to the fact that this convention-making was politically driven under the auspices of the nation's true legal luminary late H. Shirley Amarasinghe who presided over at the Third United Nations' Conference on Law of the Sea that adopted this particular convention, while it brought this country to some focal points of attention considering its location in the Indian Ocean with certain provisions including an Annex being directly applying to this significant feature.

Research on ocean affairs

Since then, Sri Lanka has played an important role in ocean affairs but to the surprise of many nations, has not been able to secure a leading position in the international set up thus showing a somewhat remote stand in the implementation of some of its important provisions. One of the main areas that need the revival of active engagement in this 'God-gifted' resource is the proper conducting of scientific research.

The National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), which was formerly known as National Aquatics Resources Agency having been established as a statutory body under Act No. 54 of 1981 has since its establishment is vested with the responsibility of carrying out and coordinating research, development and management activities on the subject of aquatic resources in the country. Being the apex institution on the subject, it appears that it has chiefly dealt with the fisheries aspect rather than the much vibrant and wider scope of 'marine resources'.

It is quite sad that much of the governmental concerns are thus directed towards harnessing fishery resources and their preservation than attending to the broader and long term gains involved with the rest.

Apart from the expeditions in newly discovered potential oil and gas fields off its north-western coast, has Sri Lanka actually conducts useful researches on its freely available ocean-fields to the fullest?

Article 238 of the said Law of the Sea Convention has bestowed upon all States 'the right to conduct scientific research' while allowing such states to conduct these research in accordance with the conventional provisions. It is believed that the future of world's medicinal cures would depend on these marine resources and there appear many reported discoveries of potential new medical treatments and sunscreens out of microbes and floating plants of the ocean.

Not only the medicinal values but also the physical well being of the land based living beings such as humans and other animals can heavily depend on the research that could be carried out in different forms at sea including the early warning systems on Tsunamis and storms as a matter of saving lives.

Limitations of research

Thus, the conventional regime has imposed certain limitations on states for their carrying out of research especially with due concerns on maintaining world peace where such research shall only be conducted for peaceful purposes using appropriate methods and means rather to preserve and protect the marine environment while restraining from unjustifiable interferences with the use of the sea by legitimate users as according to Article 240 of the convention.

Although the conduct of research can well be termed as of a right conferred by this international legal instrument, states do not possess the right to claim the part of marine environment or the resources, which fall subjected to the research activity that takes place. This restriction has thus been introduced as a matter of maintaining international peace and sharing of valuable information and research outcomes through international co-operation for proper and useful distribution of knowledge based finding and technology.

However, those restrictions do not apply for research activities that are conducted within the territorial sea waters to which the coastal state has full sovereignty while exercising exclusive right to regulate, authorize and conduct such research under expressed consent. Furthermore, such states possess the right to regulate, authorize and conduct marine scientific research within its exclusive economic zone that extends to 200 nautical miles from its baseline and on their continental shelf in the exercise of their jurisdictional competence over such zones. Since a country is able to extend these rights to foreign entities subject to applicable controls and authority of it, the tendency of allowing other states to benefit from one's resources would fall into severe criticism.

However, Articles 242 - 244 of the convention attempts to minimize such conflicts with want of due cooperation between states as a fundamental principle introduced by the conventional regime.

In summary, it requires states to promote international co-operation through the affording of reasonable opportunity to obtain information in respect of research outputs while creating favourable conditions for the conduct of such research through bilateral and multilateral agreements between interested states.

Furthermore, it requires states to make available the 'know-hows' by way of publication and dissemination while transferring such knowledge and information for better ends especially for the developing states as a matter of strengthening the autonomous marine scientific research capabilities of such developing states through educational and training programmes designed to uplift the standards of technical and scientific personnel.

However, it is quite dubious whether this objective is well implemented in its pure sense. Therefore, the best alternative would be to conduct one's own research within its jurisdictional zones though necessary funding and technical know-how remain main obstacles in reaching these goals.

Despite the fact that Sri Lanka, as a developing state, lacks sufficient financial and technical capabilities in the field of marine scientific research, it could well reach its goals with the active engagement of existing experts within the country in various disciplines. In fact, this would require a proper national plan with the aim of attaining progressive milestones categorized into multi- faceted research themes through some identified internal capacity building on researchers involved with such projects.

Absence of clear definition for marine research

The most notable absence in the Law of the Sea Convention is a clear definition for marine scientific research though it deals comprehensively with rights and obligations of states and the functional nature of conducting such research in the oceans of the globe. It is generally understood that the term refers to the activities undertaken in the ocean to expand knowledge of the marine environment and its processors.

Though many believe that activities such as marine data collection extending to exploration of natural resources, hydrographic surveys, laying out and operating submarine cables, environmental monitoring and assessment of marine pollution, collection of marine meteorological data and routine observations on forecasting of weather patterns and climatic change thus form part of marine scientific research, it is obviously a misleading determination.

In fact, the concept is much deeper in application to actively refer to the conduct of activities involved in the proliferation and advancement of marine-bio, behavioural and of natural science relating to living and non-living species with the objective of identifying their use for the well being of the mankind as well of the natural habitats of the oceans.

It would also help maintain a proper coastal zone management system while promoting under water sanctuaries for future research benefits and for proper utilisation and management of earth systems modeling. Considering the gravity of the endeavour involved in the marine scientific research area, it would always not be possible for a state such as Sri Lanka to invest heavily on projects that may not bring immediate profits of monetary value.

However, these projects that may not be commercially profitable at initial stage of study would thus bring enormous amounts of benefits on successful progression. But due to the said fact of being non-profitable, the public or private participation in terms of monetary investment can be seen to the minimal, which is indeed a commonly identified set-back in most of the research projects on- or off- the shore.

Overcoming obstacles

Nevertheless, the Law of the Sea Convention has introduced certain criteria in overcoming these obstacles faced by states and to facilitate states' involvement in taking up of marine research activities through mutual co-operation. While promoting intervention by international organisations through bilateral and multilateral arrangements for marine scientific research, and imposing duties upon states and such international organisations to share and exchange those proposals and finding, states would be in a bit of a comfortable position to aspire towards achieving a meaningful end as intended by Articles 247 and 248 of the convention.

In case where broader participation is unwelcome due to defined or undefined reasons, states can always rely upon either of its public or private sector participation or a joint venture of those. Therefore, it is clear that the international law has thus provided all sorts of means to conduct one's research in the ocean sector but the willingness towards realising these goals seem to drag future successes of desirable outputs.

Since most of the important resources lie in the exclusive economic zones and on the continental shelf region, some states openly show reluctance to conduct research in such areas due to their obligations to share the outcomes with other states under the present multilateral system while some other states have taken policy decisions not to unreasonably deny or delay consent for such marine researches.

However, narrow thinking would certainly jeopardize future prospects for the generations to come, and therefore, states must address this issue at high profile meetings of the future at United Nations' to agree on a workable mechanism for the attainment of the conventional goals in respect of marine scientific research.

Adopting modern approaches

As a step forward, it is time for Sri Lanka to adopt expeditious means of conducting marine scientific research in line with modern approaches than traditional ones that are been conducted at present by various governmental institutions. It is quite obvious that such a step would require a huge amount of investment where capital expenditure on machinery and equipment coupled with technical know-how amount to extra-ordinary figures.

Nevertheless, the benefits that would rise to such high figures bringing hope for the future of this world will no wonder out-class the investments so made. Therefore, the government must indulge itself to formulate a national plan with either budgetary allocation or through public-private partnership to modernise its marine scientific research sector to suit the future needs.

Considering much effective and practical approach towards this proposal, it could be seen that the recently developed idea of the Our Nation and the Sea Initiative (ONS) that operates under the Indian Ocean Marine Affairs Co-operation (IOMAC), an inter-governmental organisation, to set and operate an "Oceanology Centre" in Trincomalee.

Accordingly, this centre is expected to operate as a research hub thus focusing on conducting multi -disciplinary research related to marine affairs that would link the intellectual excellence of experts from different fields of expertise. It is said to create functional capabilities of conducting thorough research on marine living and non-living resources, its proper management and conservation and on the designing of legislative tools leading to their well being and exploration while inventing new findings of medicinal and biological value.

Furthermore, the existing Centre for Research on Marine Mammals (CRIOMM) could further the support towards developing strategies for the protection of marine mammals and fisheries sector while NAARA could also play an important role as an arm of the state to fully ensure Sri Lanka gains its reputation as a maritime hub proclaimed by Mahinda Chinthanaya , the government's official policy statement. Hence, state universities as well as CINEC, a leading private higher educational institution involved in naval and maritime studies could well be strategic partners of this kind of innovation.

(The author holds a LLM in International Law from University of Utrecht and a PhD from University of Hamburg and is currently the Acting Head of Department of the Faculty of Management at CINEC Campus)