Convention of the Law of the Sea of 1982 Law of the Sea Convention (LOSC)

A UNITED NATIONS CONVENTION Signed December 10, 1982 in Montego Bay, Jamaica It was later amended on 16 November, 1994 What was once a 308 article bill grew to one with 320 articles and 9 annexes governing “all aspects of ocean space”. These addressed delimitation, environmental control, marine scientific research, economic and commercial activities, transfer of technology and the settlement of disputes relating to the ocean. 150 countries gathered representing their regions to sign Function: “To establish rules governing all uses of the oceans and their resources” (UN.org) Introduced new regimes to address ocean concerns (like those stated above) as a whole. It allowed nations to control oceanic traffic (who goes where for how far/long), regulate passages used for popular international transit, and to observe marine research of the waters surrounding the state.

http://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/convention_overview_convention .htm