(a) Measures adopted under this article shall be considered necessary only if,
following consultation with relevant legal instruments or frameworks or global,
regional, subregional or sectoral bodies, the serious or irreversible harm cannot be
managed in a timely manner through the application of the other articles of this
Agreement or by a relevant legal instrument or framework or global, regional,
subregional or sectoral body;
(b) Measures adopted on an emergency basis shall be based on the best
available science and scientific information and, where available, relevant traditional
knowledge of Indigenous Peoples and local communities, and take into account the
precautionary approach. Such measures may be proposed by Parties or recommended
by the Scientific and Technical Body, and may be adopted intersessionally. The
measures shall be temporary and must be reconsidered for decision at the next
meeting of the Conference of the Parties following their adoption;
(b.bis.) The measures shall terminate two years following their entry into force,
or shall be terminated earlier by the Conference of the Parties upon being replaced by
area-based management tools, including marine protected areas, and related measures
established in accordance with this Part, or by measures adopted by a relevant legal
instrument or framework or global, regional, subregional or sectoral body, or by a
decision of the Conference of the Parties when the circumstances that necessitated
the measure cease to exist;
(c) Procedures and guidance for the establishment of emergency measures,
including consultation procedures, shall be elaborated by the Scientific and Technical
Body, as necessary, for consideration and adoption by the Conference of the Parties
at its earliest opportunity. Such procedures shall be inclusive and transparent.
Article 20
Implementation
1. Parties shall ensure that activities under their jurisdiction or control that take
place in areas beyond national jurisdiction are conducted consistently with the
decisions adopted under this Part.
2. Nothing in this Agreement shall prevent a Party from adopting more stringent
measures with respect to its nationals and vessels or with regard to activities under
its jurisdiction or control in addition to those adopted under this Part, in accordance
with international law and in support of the objectives of the Agreement.
3. The implementation of the measures adopted under this Part should not impose
a disproportionate burden on Parties that are small island developing States or least
developed countries, directly or indirectly.
4. Parties shall promote, as appropriate, the adoption of measures within relevant
legal instruments and frameworks and relevant global, regional, subregional and
sectoral bodies of which they are members, to support the implementation of the
decisions and recommendations made by the Conference of the Parties under this Part.
5. Parties shall encourage those States that are entitled to become Parties to this
Agreement, in particular those whose activities, vessels, or nationals operate in an
area that is the subject of an established area-based management tool, including a
marine protected area, to adopt measures supporting the decisions and
recommendations by the Conference of the Parties on area-based management tools,
including marine protected areas, established under this Part.
6. A Party that is not a party to or a participant in a relevant legal instrument or
framework, or a member of a relevant global, regional, subregional or sectoral body,