Current Developments 



The ocean has already begun to receive new attention in other countries, the academic 

 community, and the Congress. One of the Administration's highest priorities this year is 

 accession to the Law of the Sea (LOS) Convention. The LOS Convention restrains excessive 

 maritime claims and codifies key legal provisions in the areas of navigational freedoms, 

 ownership of non-living resources, environment, fisheries, and public vessel sovereign immunity 

 in a way that balances the vital interests of maritime and coastal states. 



In May 1998, Lisbon, Portugal, will open EXP098, an international world's fair focusing 

 on the importance of the ocean in our lives. This event will be an opportunity to raise public 

 awareness world-wide since over 20 million people are expected to attend. The ocean will also 

 be a key issue at the 1998 G-8 Environmental Ministerial meeting that will be held in April, 

 1998, in the United Kingdom. 



In recent years, many reports have concluded that domestic ocean management in the 

 United States is fragmented. Most recently, a report entitled Striking a Balance: Improving 

 Stewardship of Marine Areas , authored by the Marine Board of the National Research Council, 

 concluded that our existing domestic management system is characterized by a confusing array 

 of laws, regulations, and practices at the federal, state, and local levels. Further, it concluded that 

 the various agencies that implement and enforce existing legal regimes operate with mandates 

 that often conflict with each other, and that no mechanism exists for establishing a common 

 vision and set of objectives. To begin correcting this situation, the Marine Board recommended 

 the creation of a "National Marine Council" to define national objectives and improve 

 coordination among federal and state agencies and other interested parties in the private sector. 

 It also considered whether a domestic ocean management regime would be an effective structure 

 for planning and decision-making, since most ocean management issues cross state boundaries. 

 Congress is considering legislation this year to develop and maintain a coordinated, 

 comprehensive, and long-range national policy with respect to domestic ocean and coastal 

 activities. 



The Federal agencies with ocean-related programs have been planning activities for the 

 Year of the Ocean. In addition, these agencies have prepared the following set of discussion 

 papers on a variety of themes and cross-cutting issues. They discuss what is working well and 

 what is not in ocean resource management, and identify needs and opportunities for the future. 

 They are intended to provide some of the background information needed to enable both the 

 public and private sectors to work together to promote the conservation, exploration, and 

 sustainable use of the ocean. 



VI 



