Transcript
JENS KRUGER: So, we have an international convention, that's the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea called UNCLOS. That sets out the provisions for mapping out delimiting and then declaring your boundaries. So, in our case, since we are coastal states, we have the Exclusive Economic Zones.
They are derived from land features. If something was to happen to those land features, then obviously it would influence those maritime boundaries. When people wrote the convention UNCLOS, no one had the foresight, no one knew about climate change so it's an external factor that's been happening. And even though the Pacific Islands don't contribute significantly to climate change, through for example greenhouse gas emissions, we are living in that reality, so we need to think about how to deal with it. So, if a land feature were to disappear, there are currently no provisions under UNCLOS on how to deal with that. So, these are the kinds of discussions we are currently having and that's something we need to think about because we do not want to have reduced jurisdiction because of climate change.
DOMINIC GODFREY: And the potential therefore, if a landmark is lost - for example one of the atolls in the north of Tuvalu - the surrounding EEZ that is measured from that point could potentially be lost in the current way the law is structured in the Law of the Sea or is that not established at all as to what would happen?
JK: Well the standpoint that we are taking is that there will be no loss in jurisdiction due to climate change. International law is not very clear on this subject so for example the International Law Commission is currently investigating this and we are working with them to bring our opinion to the table, which is that our EEZ's will remain as they are even if something changes due to climate change.
DG: So, worst case scenario for an island nation, if it were to lose an island and people became environmental refugees, you're making sure that they wouldn't also become economic refugees from their own EEZ's?
JK: International law is currently not clear about this and it might take years for something to crystalise and we want to be part of that discussion. We have a strong sense of belonging to the ocean and yes, we would like to be part of that discourse and we plan to make our voices heard. And that voice and that opinion and the statement that we are working towards is that there will be no loss of our Exclusive Economic Zones through changes from climate change.
DG: You say it could take years. It's more imperative than that isn't it? It's important to move fast.
JK: Well one of the best things that we can do now, and we are actively working on this, is to actually conclude all the remaining Exclusive Economic Zones. There are 14 bilateral boundaries still to be settled. We have a number of High Seas boundaries that still need to be declared. So, we should not lose focus of the work that we still need to do which is to use the provisions under UNCLOS to delimit our boundaries.
