Common heritage of mankind: when science challenges legal concepts

By demonstrating the role of marine organisms in the formation and composition of deep-sea mineral resources, the aim of this poster is to demonstrate that legal definitions can sometimes be relatively simplistic and limited. Considering that on the deep seafloor, the meaning of legal terms can determine the applicable legal regime, this study represents an important aspect of academic legal research. The overall goal is to introduce the interpretation methodology that will be used in the author’s PhD research project on the legal framework of deep-sea mining

An EIA process for deep sea mining in the Area: facing key issues in an international context

With the fast rising sector of deep seabed mining, and the increasing number of exploration contracts in the international area of the deep seabed (the Area), The International Seabed Authority is urged to produce a mining legislation addressing the exploitation phase. One of the major elements of the exploitation regulations under draft will be to design and operationalize a process for environmental impact assessment (EIA) prior, during and post mining activities. While trying to put in place such a mechanism, the ISA will be confronted with key issues due to its nature as an international organisation. Indeed, the ISA decision-making follows a diplomatic process. Member States meet annually to adopt regulations and approve contracts for exploration (and eventually exploitation). To design a review process for mining applications and further monitoring activities, one cannot ignore the specificities of the ISA structure and decision-making process. The three elements that will be presented in this paper can be identified as good practice in EIA in view of national and regional legislations, and of the 2014 stakeholder survey results. However, they are likely to pose issues in the drafting of an exploitation regulation. Can it be done in accordance with the Law of the Sea Convention (LOSC), which provides the legal basis for States to act? What guarantees are needed in such a regulation to ensure independence and transparency? How can the elements of a satisfactory EIA process be included in the time frames of the ISA’s meetings and decision-making procedure? • Independent Peer Review: As seabed minerals are the Common Heritage of Mankind (CHM), it is likely that the International Community will not find it acceptable if the evaluation of impacts relied exclusively on the ISA organs. However, we will see that setting up an ad hoc expert group for the review of contractors’ submissions, as suggested by the survey’s responses and which should be external to the ISA, might not be as easy as it sounds. • Public participation: Again, the CHM factor brings up the issue of publicity. Making a maximum of information publicly available online may not be sufficient, considering the practice of including a public consultation phase in evaluation processes, particularly in Europe. While organising an online consultation may not be too difficult as such, making sure that the inputs and concerns raised thereby will be taken into consideration in the decision-making process is likely to be much more challenging. • “EIA Committee”: Taking into account the expertise needed to evaluate the significance of impacts and to make its decisions accordingly, the creation of an additional organ within the ISA has been advised and should be considered. This organ should be representative of a multidisciplinary expertise to the service of stakeholders as an advisory body. It should make recommendations to both contractors during their EIA development, and to the ISA organs on their evaluation of applications and monitoring reports. However, to actually bring added value to the EIA process, this “EIA committee” has to be independent. Independence is one of the most challenging goals to be achieved in a context where States nominate and elect members of the ISA organs. This paper aims at pointing out key issues in the development of an EIA framework for exploitation in the Area, raising questions and proposing lines of approach for further thoughts. After a brief introduction reminding the ISA structure and the different stages of an EIA process, it will focus on the above-mentioned key issues by searching for the legal basis provided by the LOSC and the procedural guarantees needed in the coming Regulations to achieve an efficient and meaningful EIA process

Mare Geneticum : Balancing Governance of Marine Genetic Resources in International Waters

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Access to and use of marine genetic resources : understanding the legal framework

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. Acknowledgements This work was supported by the PharmaSea project funded by the EU Seventh Framework Programme, and reects only the authors' views. Contract number 312184. www.pharma-sea.eu.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Environmental Impact Assessment process for deep-sea mining in ‘the Area’

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is key to the robust environmental management of industrial projects; it is used to anticipate, assess and reduce environmental and social risks of a project. It is instrumental in project planning and execution, and often required for financing and regulatory approval to be granted. The International Seabed Authority currently requires an EIA for deep-sea mining (DSM) in areas beyond national jurisdiction (the Area), but the existing regulations present only a portion of a robust EIA process. This article presents an ideal EIA process for DSM, drawing upon the application of EIA from allied industries. It contains screening, scoping and assessment phases, along with the development of an environmental management plan. It also includes external review by experts, stakeholder consultation, and regulatory review. Lessons learned from application of EIA elsewhere are discussed in relation to DSM, including the integration of EIA into UK domestic law, and the reception of EIAs prepared for seabed ore extraction in the Exclusive Economic Zones of New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. Finally, four main challenges of implementing the EIA process to DSM in the Area are presented: 1) EIA process for DSM needs to incorporate mechanisms to address uncertainty; 2) detailed requirements for the EIA process phases should be made clear; 3) mechanisms are needed to ensure that the EIA influences decision making; and, 4) the EIA process requires substantial input and involvement from the regulator

The caecal microbiota promotes the acute inflammatory response and the loss of the intestinal barrier integrity during severe Eimeria tenella infection

IntroductionCoccidiosis, a disease caused by intestinal apicomplexan parasites Eimeria, is a threat to poultry production. Eimeria tenella is one of the most pathogenic species, frequently causing a high prevalence of opportunistic infections.ObjectiveThe objective of this study is to investigate the role of the microbiota in the pathogenesis of severe Eimeria tenella infection.MethodsWe have previously shown that microbiota can promote parasite development. To study the effect of the microbiota on the pathogenesis of this infection, we used an experimental condition (inoculum of 10 000 oocysts E. tenella INRAE) in which the parasite load is similar between germ-free and conventional broilers at 7 days post-infection (pi). Thirteen conventional and 24 germ-free chickens were infected. Among this latter group, 12 remained germ-free and 12 received a microbiota from conventional healthy chickens at 4 days pi. Caeca and spleens were collected at 7 days pi.ResultsOur results demonstrated caecal lesions and epithelium damage in conventional chickens at 7 days pi but not in germ-free infected chickens. Administration of conventional microbiota to germ-free chickens partially restored these deleterious effects. At day 7 pi, both infected conventional and germ-free chickens exhibited increased gene expression of inflammatory mediators, including IL15, IFNγ, TNFα and the anti-inflammatory mediator SOCS1, whereas the inflammatory mediators CXCLi2, CCL20, IL18, CSF1, NOS2, PTGS2, IL1β, IL6, the receptor CCR2, and the anti-inflammatory mediators TGFβ1 and IL10 were upregulated only in infected conventional chickens. Notably, the IL18, PTGS2 gene expression was significantly higher in the infected conventional group. Overall, the inflammatory response enhanced by the microbiota might be in part responsible for higher lesion scores. Epithelial tight junction protein gene expression analysis revealed a significant upregulation of CLDN1 with the infection and microbiota, indicating a potential loss of the intestinal barrier integrity.ConclusionThese observations imply that, during E. tenella infection, the caecal microbiota could trigger an acute inflammatory response, resulting in a loss of intestinal integrity. Increase in bacterial translocation can then lead to the likelihood of opportunistic infections. Hence, modulating the microbiota may offer a promising strategy for improving poultry gut health and limiting caecal coccidiosis

Marine genetic resources and the access and benefit-sharing legal framework

The legal landscape regulating the access to and utilization of genetic resources has changed with the entry into force of the Nagoya Protocol in 2014, and the adoption of the related EU Regulation on user compliance in 2014. Moreover, many countries are now adopting laws that regulate access to their genetic resources. This has clear implications for scientists working on genetic resources, including those doing taxonomic and biotechnology research on marine micro-organisms. The first part of this chapter informs the scientific community on the Access and Benefit-Sharing legal framework, including a focus on their application to marine genetic resources, for which the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982) is also relevant. The difference between (domestic) access legislation to genetic resources and the compliance mechanisms, such as the Nagoya Protocol and the EU Regulation 511/2014 are explained in detail. A more practical description is then presented in a step-by-step approach, which can serve as a basic guideline for scientists