The Ecosystem Approach for Conserving the Marine Environment and its Application in the Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic

Abstract

As science has progressed, the need to take a holistic view when addressing environmental issues has become more evident. Recognition of this need is reflected in the “ecosystem approach”. The ecosystem approach was first adopted in an international legal instrument in 1982 by the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (“CCAMLR”) with respect to the Antarctic Ocean. This paper assesses the way in which the Convention has implemented the ecosystem approach, where it has been successful and its limitations. The paper will also address Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, one of the biggest obstacles to the successful application of the ecosystem approach in the Southern Ocean. The paper focuses on International Law in general, and the CCAMLR specifically, to determine whether these legal instruments help or hinder the Commission’s battle to decrease unsustainable fishing practices. The paper concludes that there is in fact a lacuna in international fisheries law that is hampering efforts to decrease such practices. Therefore until international law becomes more stringent with respect to the management of fisheries, there must be reliance on promotion of, and education about, the effects that IUU fishing has on the environment and the need to apply an ecosystem approach to fisheries management.