1992 Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North-East Atlantic

OSPAR Convention

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OSPAR Commission

See Article 32: Settlement of Disputes

“1. Any disputes between Contracting Parties relating to the interpretation or application of the Convention, which cannot be settled otherwise by the Contracting Parties concerned, for instance by means of inquiry or conciliation within the Commission, shall at the request of any of those Contracting Parties, be submitted to arbitration under the conditions laid down in this Article.

2. Unless the parties to the dispute decide otherwise, the procedure of the arbitration referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article shall be in accordance with paragraphs 3 to 10 of this Article.

3. (a) At the request addressed by one Contracting Party to another Contracting Party in accordance with paragraph 1 of this Article, an arbitral tribunal shall be constituted. The request for arbitration shall state the subject matter of the application including in particular the Articles of the Convention, the interpretation or application of which is in dispute. (b) The applicant party shall inform the Commission that it has requested the setting up of an arbitral tribunal, stating the name of the other party to the dispute and the Articles of the Convention the interpretation or application of which, in its opinion, is in dispute. The Commission shall forward the information thus received to all Contracting Parties to the Convention.

4. The arbitral tribunal shall consist of three members: each of the parties to the dispute shall appoint an arbitrator; the two arbitrators so appointed shall designate by common agreement the third arbitrator who shall be the chairman of the tribunal. The latter shall not be a national of one of the parties to the dispute, nor have his usual place of residence in the territory of one of these parties, nor be employed by any of them, nor have dealt with the case in any other capacity.

5. (a) If the chairman of the arbitral tribunal has not been designated within two months of the appointment of the second arbitrator, the President of the International Court of Justice shall, at the request of either party, designate him within a further two months’ period. (b) If one of the parties to the dispute does not appoint an arbitrator within two months of receipt of the request, the other party may inform the President of the International Court of Justice who shall designate the chairman of the arbitral tribunal within a further two months’ period. Upon designation, the chairman of the arbitral tribunal shall request the party which has not appointed an arbitrator to do so within two months. After such period, he shall inform the President of the International Court of Justice who shall make this appointment within a further two months’ period.

6. (a) The arbitral tribunal shall decide according to the rules of international law and, in particular, those of the Convention. (b) Any arbitral tribunal constituted under the provisions of this Article shall draw up its own rules of procedure. (c) In the event of a dispute as to whether the arbitral tribunal has jurisdiction, the matter shall be decided by the decision of the arbitral tribunal.

7. (a) The decisions of the arbitral tribunal, both on procedure and on substance, shall be taken by majority voting of its members. (b) The arbitral tribunal may take all appropriate measures in order to establish the facts. It may, at the request of one of the parties, recommend essential interim measures of protection. (c) If two or more arbitral tribunals constituted under the provisions of this Article are seized of requests with identical or similar subjects, they may inform themselves of the procedures for establishing the facts and take them into account as far as possible. (d) The parties to the dispute shall provide all facilities necessary for the effective conduct of the proceedings. (e) The absence or default of a party to the dispute shall not constitute an impediment to the proceedings.

8. Unless the arbitral tribunal determines otherwise because of the particular circumstances of the case, the expenses of the tribunal, including the remuneration of its members, shall be borne by the parties to the dispute in equal shares. The tribunal shall keep a record of all its expenses, and shall furnish a final statement thereof to the parties.

9. Any Contracting Party that has an interest of a legal nature in the subject matter of the dispute which may be affected by the decision in the case, may intervene in the proceedings with the consent of the tribunal.

10. (a) The award of the arbitral tribunal shall be accompanied by a statement of reasons. It shall be final and binding upon the parties to the dispute. (b) Any dispute which may arise between the parties concerning the interpretation or execution of the award may be submitted by either party to the arbitral tribunal which made the award or, if the latter cannot be seized thereof, to another arbitral tribunal constituted for this purpose in the same manner as the first.”

Government of the French Republic

Annex I: On the Prevention and Elimination of Pollution from Land-based Sources

Annex II: On the Prevention and Elimination of Pollution by Dumping or Incineration

Annex III: On the Prevention and Elimination of Pollution from Offshore Sources

Annex IV: On the Assessment of the Quality of the Marine Environment

Annex V: On the Protection and Conservation of the Ecosystems and Biological Diversity of the Maritime Area

Appendix 1 – Criteria for the Definition of Practices and Techniques Mentioned in Paragraph 3(b)(i) of Article 2 of the Convention

Appendix 2 – Criteria mentioned in Paragraph 2 of Article 1 of Annex I and in Paragraph 2 of Article 2 of Annex III

Appendix 3 – Criteria for Identifying Human Activities for the Purpose of Annex V

25/03/1998

Article 29: Entry into Force

” 1. The Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the date on which all Contracting Parties to the Oslo Convention and all Contracting Parties to the Paris Convention have deposited their instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession.

2. For any State or regional economic integration organisation not referred to in paragraph 1 of this Article, the Convention shall enter into force in accordance with paragraph 1 of this Article, or on the thirtieth day following the date of the deposit of the instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession by that State or regional economic integration organisations, whichever is later.”

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1972 Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping from Ships and Aircraft

1974 Convention for the Prevention of Marine Pollution from Land-Based Sources (Paris Convention)

OSPAR Secretariat accessed on 08/07/2024

Note the second last paragraph of the Preamble:

“Considering that the present Oslo and Paris Conventions do not adequately control some of the many sources of pollution, and that it is therefore justifiable to replace them with the present Convention, which addresses all sources of pollution of the marine Environment and the adverse effects of human activities upon it, takes into account the precautionary principle and strengthens regional cooperation”