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4.5 Conclusions

The PSSA concept has developed considerably since its inception in 1978. The concept has clearly been influenced by the MPA concept and, in many respects, can be considered as a specialised type of MPA. However, while subsequent reviews of the PSSA Guidelines have considerably clarified and amplified the scope of the PSSA concept, a fundamental problem, and a cause of considerable confusion, appears to be the lack of a clear legal basis for PSSAs in their own right. Despite giving effect to a number of provisions of the LOSC, the PSSA concept has no legal basis in any international convention. This lack of a clear legal basis has resulted in some considerable concerns over the application and future development of the PSSA concept.

Notwithstanding this, there is considerable evidence that the PSSA concept provides the IMO and its members with a comprehensive management tool with which to give effect to obligations under a range of international conventions with a focus on the protection of the marine environment and marine biological diversity. In this regard, it is argued by many that the concept has considerable utility as one of the measures available to the IMO and its members to protect vulnerable marine habitats.

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  110. Refer to paper UNEP/CBD/WG-PA/1/2, para. 10 (note 2 above). While, the specific reference to PSSA in this paper is in relation to the designation of high seas marine protected areas, it clearly highlights the relevance of the PSSA concept more generally in the context of the CBD and its members.

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(2007). The Particularly Sensitive Sea Area Concept. In: Marine Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg . https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-37699-6_4

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