Preventing Unilateral Deep Seabed Mining Activities – To What Extent Does the UNCLOS Regime Constrain External Actors?

Chapter 5 determines whether the common heritage prohibition of unilateral mining activities in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) prevents external actors from undertaking deep seabed mining activities unilaterally. In order to ascertain whether this prohibition binds corporate actors outside of UNCLOS, this chapter determines whether the procedural reach of UNCLOS extends to include non-States Parties and their nationals. It does so by considering, firstly, the reach of the regime as a matter of treaty law, including by assessing whether UNCLOS imposes third state obligations or creates an objective regime in relation to deep seabed mining. It also evaluates the status of the regime under customary law, with particular consideration of US practice and the role of the persistent objector doctrine. Finally, it addresses the extent to which the regime imposes direct obligations upon external corporate actors in the form of corporate obligations.