Railla Puno delivered a presentation online based on working paper “Oceans and Climate Change: Synergy and Conflict in International Law” at the 2023 IUCN Academy of with this year’s theme of Future-Proofing Law in a Time of Environmental Emergency. The Conference was held in Joensuu, Finland from 31 July to 4 August.

ABSTRACT:

Oceans and Climate Change: Synergy and Conflict in International Law

Climate change has profound impacts on oceans and vice versa. This has been confirmed in devastating detail by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in its “Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate” published in 2019. According to this Report, climate change is projected to cause ocean warming – which results in sea-level rise, coral bleaching, and changes in storm patterns and precipitation – and ocean acidification – which dissolves calcium carbonate in shellfish and corals, and affects the size, behaviour, and physiology of organisms. On the other hand, oceans have the potential to contribute greatly to adaptation and mitigation efforts that will allow us to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. From the implementation of marine protected areas to the more controversial ocean fertilization efforts, the global ocean, which covers 71% of the Earth’s surface, has the potential to play a major role in climate action.

Despite these strong linkages, the development of international law on ocean and climate change has been relatively slow.  It was only in recent years that the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has dedicated a work stream for oceans through the Ocean Pathway initiative which paved the way for the Ocean Dialogue, a recurring process within the Subsidiary Body for Scientific and Technological Advice (SBSTA) with the purpose of strengthening ocean-based action. In the Dialogue held in 2022, Parties and non-Party stakeholders discussed, among others, how ocean-climate action can be integrated in Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and shared current and innovative options for ocean climate solutions including finance, technology, capacity building, and science. Outside the UNFCCC, international law on ocean and climate change has also expanded. For example, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has developed an extensive program on energy efficiency and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from ships. The Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) has a Working Group dedicated to climate change that studies the impacts of climate change on migratory species and identifies options for interventions.

As these various environmental agreements come up with new policies and mandates, instances of legal pluralism cannot be avoided. This paper will take an in-depth study of the current international legal frameworks governing oceans and climate change to determine where opportunities for synergy can be optimized and conflicts can be resolved by examining three case studies of legal overlap.