Abstract
The San Jose Declaration formally established the Eastern Tropical Pacific Marine Corridor (CMAR) in 2004, a voluntary regional cooperation mechanism created by the coastal States of Ecuador, Costa Rica, Colombia, and Panama in response to anthropogenic pressures in the Eastern Tropical Pacific, one of the most productive and biodiverse oceans in the world. This article will explain how, in the absence of a coherent, overarching regional ocean governance framework, these four coastal States came together to create a regional cooperation mechanism for the conservation and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in the Eastern Tropical Pacific. The key normative features of CMAR will be examined, as well as legal and governance challenges, such as its non-binding nature, large scale, limited sectoral engagement, and insufficient resources. The analysis will be couched within a discussion of the wider regional ocean governance framework, which remains fragmented, with gaps and overlaps in terms of membership, mandates and geographic coverage. Possibilities for integration, and the potential impact of a new treaty protecting biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction (BBNJ), will also be considered.
Highlights
Area-based measures, in particular marine protected areas (MPAs), have emerged in recent decades as a widely accepted policy and legal instrument to provide for the long-term conservation of nature, restore ecosystem resilience1 and mitigate the damage to marine biodiversity caused by human activities (Laffoley et al, 2019)
The scale of a project like CMAR involving transboundary marine management across four jurisdictions is a significant challenge and progress on formalizing the initiative has been slow to date as a result. Such an undertaking is without precedent in the region and execution is naturally complex due to the number of different actors involved, the limited resources available and the large amount of biodiversity and oceanographic area to be covered [Corredor Marino del Pacífico Este (CMAR), 2005, p. 2]
More protected areas within their national jurisdictions (Article II). This protocol led to the creation of a regional network of MPAs in the South East Pacific, which aims to strengthen the management of existing MPAs in the region and expand the network based on scientific information and in line with international law [Comisión Permanente del Pacifico Sur (CPPS), 2010]
Summary
Area-based measures, in particular marine protected areas (MPAs), have emerged in recent decades as a widely accepted policy and legal instrument to provide for the long-term conservation of nature, restore ecosystem resilience and mitigate the damage to marine biodiversity caused by human activities (Laffoley et al, 2019). The scale of a project like CMAR involving transboundary marine management across four jurisdictions is a significant challenge and progress on formalizing the initiative has been slow to date as a result Such an undertaking is without precedent in the region and execution is naturally complex due to the number of different actors involved (technical, political, and governmental/non-governmental), the limited resources available and the large amount of biodiversity and oceanographic area to be covered [Corredor Marino del Pacífico Este (CMAR), 2005, p. Despite the ambitious scale of CMAR as currently proposed, the 2019– 2024 Action Plan recommends considering possibilities for expanding the initiative to include other MPAs and countries in the region [Corredor Marino del Pacífico Este (CMAR), 2019a, p. Despite the ambitious scale of CMAR as currently proposed, the 2019– 2024 Action Plan recommends considering possibilities for expanding the initiative to include other MPAs and countries in the region [Corredor Marino del Pacífico Este (CMAR), 2019a, p. 46]
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