Marine Environments

FIELD has prepared a new briefing note ‘An implementing agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change - the US proposal and experience with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea'. The note provides a summary overview of experience with legally binding implementing agreements under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the US role in relation to these agreements.

Our oceans cover more than 70% of the Earth's surface and provide a habitat for approximately 90% of the planet's living biomass. The mostly unexplored deep seabed is the largest reservoir of biodiversity on the planet. Ocean ecosystems support all life on this planet. They provide oxygen and food, buffer the weather, and regulate global temperature.