Il Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997 e l'adesione del Regno Unito alla Convenzione delle Nazioni Unite sul diritto del mare

This article addresses the British accession to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It focuses on the implementation of the Convention's provisions on protection of the marine environment within British domestic legislation. Implementation has been effected primarily through introducing into existing legislation (by means of the Merchant Shipping and Maritime Security Act 1997) severalConvention provisions as well as provisions of other international sources. Though sharing some features with the comparable Italian domestic legislation, contained in Law n. 979 of 1982, the more recent British legislation offers more detail and is more comprehensive. The Author concludes that an updating of the Italian law would be welcome.