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EXPLORATION
The draft regulations on exploitation of mineral resources in the Area (ISBA/25/C/WP.1) require that certain standards and guidelines be developed by the organs of ISA to support the implementation of the regulations. The standards will be legally binding on contractors and ISA, whereas the guidelines will be recommendatory in nature.
During the 25th session, the Council requested that the Legal and Technical Commission (LTC) undertake work on standards and guidelines as a matter of priority, noting the proposed process and schedule for the development of standards and guidelines contained in ISBA/25/C/19/Add.1, Annex and Enclosures I and II. The LTC recommended a three-phase approach, as follows:
The process recommended by the LTC for the development of these standards and guidelines includes the circulation of the drafts for stakeholder consultations. As of July 2021, two stakeholder consultations have taken place (20 August to 20 October 2020 and 8 April to 3 July 2021).
The following draft standards and guidelines have been prepared so far. Please note that these documents are unedited drafts and provided for the limited purpose of stakeholder consultation and not for citation or other uses.
A consultation took place from 8 April to 3 July 2021 on the following standards and guidelines under Phase 1.
Comments received are available here
A consultation took place from 20 August to 20 October 2020 on the following standards and guidelines under Phase 1.
The comments received are available here.