Regulating marine biodiscovery in sea areas under coastal state jurisdiction

Abstract

Marine biodiscovery is the examination of marine biological material for features that may be of value for commercial purposes. These features may include chemical compounds, genes and their products or, in some cases, the physical properties of the material in question. One of the principal attributes of biodiscovery is the commercialisation of the research or the intellectual property derived from the research. As it stands, many coastal States maintain an open access approach to marine biodiscovery. That is to say, no attempt is made to exclude the access of others or to control the collection and the subsequent use of material for the purpose of biodiscovery. There is some evidence however to support the view that biodiscovery will be most effective when governed by a range of international and national laws. Accordingly, the purpose of this paper is to identify the principal legal elements in the 1982 United Nations Law of the Sea Convention that are applicable to marine biodiscovery. The paper explores the key challenges and recommendations for the establishment of an appropriate governance framework governing biodiscovery activities in sea areas under the jurisdiction of a coastal Member State of the European Union.