Issues Regarding The Sponsoring States National Legislation From The Perspective Of Exploitation Of The Mineral Resources In The International Seabed Area

The international seabed area(hereinafter referred to as “the Area”)is rich in mineral resources.To avoid serious damage to the resources of the Area and the marine environment,the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea(hereinafter referred to as “the Convention”)provides that States Parties shall provide sponsoring to persons and entities operating in the Area.The sponsoring State shall fulfill its sponsorship obligations by enacting national laws and regulations and taking administrative measures to ensure that the sponsored party complies with its obligations under the Convention,the ISA regulations,and other international instruments.National legislation is central to the implementation of the sponsoring State’s obligations.With major breakthroughs in mining technology,activities in the Area are moving into the exploitation phase.In response,the International Seabed Authority(hereinafter referred to as the “ISA”)initiated the drafting of the Regulations on Exploitation of Mineral Resources in the Area(hereinafter referred to as the “Exploiting Regulations”).However,the national legislation of the sponsoring States at this stage does not meet the needs of exploitation in the Area.First,most sponsoring States currently have laws and regulations in place only for prospecting and exploration activities,which are not applicable to exploitation activities;second,current national legislations for exploitation activities are too principled to be implemented.If the relevant provisions are not refined during the exploitation phase,it will not only pose a high risk of liability for contractors and sponsoring States,but also be detrimental to the protection of the resources and environment of the Area.For the Area exploiting activities,ISA and the sponsoring countries focus mainly on environmental protection and supervision system issues.In response,ISA established Informal Working Groups(hereinafter referred to as the “IWG”)to revise the Exploiting Regulations(Draft)on key issues such as environmental protection and regulation.In July 2022,the IWG published revisions to the Exploiting Regulations(Draft)relating to “Protection and Preservation of the Marine Environment” and“Inspection,Compliance and Enforcement”.This has led to the further development of the Area exploitation system.Based on the two main issues of environmental protection and supervision system,which are the focus of the ISA,an analysis is made of how sponsoring States should improve their national legislation to meet the needs of the exploitation phase of the Area.First,from the perspective of environmental protection legislation,analyzing the disputes among sponsoring states regarding environmental protection standards.The lack of specific provisions on environmental standards in the Convention,the ISA regulations and other international documents has led to the different perceptions of environmental standards exhibited by the sponsoring states in the process of national law transformation.This is mainly reflected in two aspects: the first is the difference in the scope of the provisions of the general environmental protection obligations,and the second is the difference in setting up a system of compensation for environmental damage.This difference in environmental standards is essentially a game between the interests of economic development and the interests of environmental protection.Considering the irreversibility of environmental damage in the Area,and the amendments made by the IWG on the “Protection and Preservation of the Marine Environment”,the sponsoring State’s legislation on the Area could emphasize environmental benefits.In this regard,more principles of international environmental law could be introduced into national legislation and a diversified compensation mechanism for environmental damage can be established.Second,from the perspective of supervision system legislation,analyzing the disputes among sponsoring states regarding authority of the sponsoring State.Currently,there is no international legislation that provides for the coordination of authority between the ISA and the sponsoring state,and the exploiting stage also places higher demands on the supervision of the Area activities,so repeated supervision will be prominent.Considering draft made by the IWG on “Inspection,Compliance and Enforcement”,the Area exploitation legislation of the sponsoring State could still focus on cooperation with the ISA authority.Note that,it does not mean that the sponsoring State should agree to the expansion of the ISA authority.In addition,the sponsoring State should actively complement the national penalties to achieve effective regulation of the activities of the Area in cooperation with the ISA.As the sponsoring state with the largest number of applications for mining areas,it is naturally necessary for China to establish a relatively complete and specific national legal system,to provide effective and sufficient legal reserves and institutional provisions for future large-scale development of the Area’s resources.Although,in principle,Law of the People’s Republic of China on the Exploration and Development of Resources in Deep Seabed Areas can be applied to the development activities of the Area,considering the environmental protection and supervision requirements of the exploiting activities,China current legislation cannot effectively protect the marine environment and achieve the role of coordinated supervision of the Area.In this regard,China could improve national legislation regulating Area exploiting activities.In terms of environmental protection legislation,expanding the scope of the general environmental protection obligations of contractors,and adding an environmental deposit and environmental fund system.In terms of supervision legislation,supplementing the implementation rules of the inspection system of the Area,and improving the content of penalties for sponsored contractors who violate the law.