ABSTRACT
In 1967, when the Torrey Canyon hit the Seven Stones Reef, the United Kingdom claimed only a 3 nm territorial sea. The United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was adopted in December 1982 by a majority vote. The high seas are those waters beyond the jurisdiction of the coastal State that is beyond a States’ territorial sea, contiguous zone, continental shelf or EEZ, depending on what a particular State has claimed. Marine pollution from ships occurs in two ways: from accidents, especially sinking and wrecking; and from operational discharges. The question of jurisdiction over archaeologically and historically important wrecks arose relatively early in UNCLOS negotiations. One of the unique features of UNCLOS was the attempt to control the content and standard of regulations to protect the marine environment from pollution by reference to internationally agreed rules.
