Undersea Noise Pollution and Harm: Source, Impacts and International Legal ControlAbstract

Undersea noise is now being recognised as a major pollution problem on a global scale. Human activities, such as mercantile shipping, military activities and the exploration and exploitation of undersea minerals, have considerably increased undersea noise in the oceans in the last 50 years. Undersea noise causes stress in marine animals, increases risk of mortality by unbalancing predator-prey interactions and interferes with sound-based navigation and communication of marine animals. In the absence of appropriate regulation, undersea noise pollution and its implications for the marine environment will increase in the future. This article examines the international legal instruments of relevance to undersea noise pollution and investigates whether these instruments can sufficiently regulate undersea noise pollution. It is argued that they are currently inadequate. The article proposes a list of elements that might be used as a basis for an additional international legal regime on the prevention and control of undersea noise pollution, taking into account the recent focus by the UN General Assembly and other bodies on this issue.