33 



were being upheld, that maximum care was being taken to insure that the 

 marine environment was not being damaged, and that the resources were being 

 used efficiently. 



Administratively, the placing of jurisdiction over the sea in the hands of a 

 group such as the United Nations poses numerous other problems. Initially, we 

 must ask, where a qualified staff would be found. How could they determine 

 the size of a possible lease, the duration or terms of renewal, the royalties or 

 taxes which should be applied, the method of awarding concessions to compet- 

 ing groups, the amount and nature of control of production and prices, and 

 effectively establish and enforce the controls and requirements previously 

 enumerated as well as those yet unnamed, except on an extremely arbitrary 

 basis? With a questionable degree of urgency, should we not be sure that we 

 are on solid ground before committing ourselves to a position we might later 

 regret? 



It has been pointed out that a great deal of money is required for deep sea 

 mineraJL exploration, but even more will be necessary for production. Only a few 

 very large companies, and a few national governments have the necessary risk 

 capital readily available. Of the 135 national states in the world, 109 border on 

 the sea, but the governments likely to be involved in undersea operations of this 

 nature number no more than a dozen if we take into consideration the factors of 

 financial capacity, maritime experience and undersea technology. But, these are 

 the very same nations with important military and strategic interests in the 

 sea. In the past they have not found it necessary or expedient to ask permission 

 from the United Nations to carry out their undersea operations. In the future, 

 it is doubtful that they are going to find it necessary or desirable to ask the U.N. 

 for permission to carry out their mineral explorations. 



Furthermore, these are the very same nations which have veto powers in the 

 Security Council and extraordinary bargaining powers in the General Assembly. 



Then again, it is rather inconceivable that nations large or small would con- 

 cede taxes and royalty rights, previously under their own jurisdiction to a non- 

 sovereign agency for the granting of a right which it only obtained power to 

 grant because these nations elected to create such a device. The United Nations' 

 primary function is that of a mediator, not a sovereign. Nor would many na- 

 tions be ready to accept a proposal which would permit emplacement of foreign 

 controlled structures near their coasts. Many coastal nations w^uld undoubtedly 

 have to yield rights previously asserted. The United States, for example, has 

 granted a phosphate lease some 40 miles from the coast of California in 240 to 

 4,000 feet of water. 



Furthermore, even despite inspection controls, many states would naturally be 

 apprehensive about positioning structures, under foreign control, near their 

 shores, because of potential interference with navigation, fishing, recreation, sub- 

 marine pipelines and cables, and military exercises. Such structures would be po- 

 tential bases for covert espionage and military purposes, as well as potential 

 producers of pollutants which would eventually reach the adjacent shores. 



We readily doubt that we are at an appropriate stage in ocean development 

 for the establishment of detailed rules and principles for allocating and reg- 

 ulating the use of the ocean. Our view of the future is rather dimly perceived. 

 There are an infinite number of varied possibilities in the field of adapting the 

 ocean to human benefit. While we can hope to prepare for dealing with a variety 

 of possibilities, and attempt to make extremely flexible, tentative, resolutions for 

 anticipated problems, we cannot be nearly as optimistic if we seek to defini- 

 tively resolve problems now which are hard to define except in the most general 

 of terms. Can we effectively formulate rules for the exploration and expolitation 

 of resources before we know what and where these resources are? Thus alloca- 

 tion of sovereignty to an international community should be considered a bit 

 premature at this time. 



Our present knowledge of the future of drilling and production technology is 

 similarly limited. We really have very little knowledge of what the state of 

 such machinery, and the problems they could conceivably present in the near 

 future are or what their course of development would be. Due to this unpre- 

 dictable technological timetable and in the name of efficiency, and to avoid un- 

 necessary restraints on efficient equipment should we not wait until we are 

 more familiar with technology before adopting treaty principles? 



As far as the need for providing a source of income for the United Nations 

 is concerned, a number of points should be made. If the world powers, whose 

 assent would be a prerequisite to a plan to turn the ocean floor over to the U.N., 



