The “Water Column” and Seabed Mining in the Area: Selected Environmental Legal Considerations

The definition of the Area in Part I of the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention (the Convention) and further elaborations on the Area elsewhere in the Convention do not specifically name or include the water column overlying the Area, or include its specifically named and arguably likely equivalent in Part XI (The Area), i.e., “superjacent waters.” Waters overlying the Area are part of the marine environment under the Convention. They are addressed not only in Part XI, but also in other Parts of the Convention, including, e.g., Parts VII (High Seas), XII (Protection and Preservation of the Marine Environment), and XIII (Marine Scientific Research). These waters are also subject to these Parts. They involve multiple actors. Given this complex legal context for these waters in the Convention, this chapter reflects on selected legal considerations under the Convention regarding the regulation of “activities in the Area” in and under these waters. Particular attention is given to the marine environmental protection requirements set out in the Convention for conducting activities associated with seabed mining in the Area.