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Sea Worthy Laws Set at International Meeting To Protect Our Oceans Considering the importance of the oceans to man's well-being, the nations of the world have been slow to formulate policies for its control. Charles Elliott, guest speak- er of the Lions Club on Feb. 14th, spoke on the law of the seas, a relatively new concept which was introduced to govern countries on the high seas. Mr. Elliott, a Bowmanville resident, bas served as a Canadian delegate at the United Nations Third Confer- ence on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 111). The conference, held in Caracas, Venzuela in 1974, Geneva, Switzerland in 1975 and with two sessions in New York in 1976, was an effort to lay down specific laws for the high seas. Unchartered Laws But, while it was not until 1958 that definite laws were drawn up to cover control of the oceans, useful rules and regulations for maintaining order were unofficially in effect ail along, Mr. Elliott said. By then technology had mushroomed and the previous understanding were no longer effective. The first UNCLOS confer- ence brought accepted sea practices into a polished statement which most coun- tries around the world readily adopted The consensus of opinion from the conference, however, was that their policies had failed to specify in certain area, particularly leaving rules governing ownership of the continental shelf up to interpretation A second conference passed without successfully resolving the issue until the United Nations itself formulated an agreement that the seas and its resources outside national boundaries were "the com- mon heritage of mankind." The conference is com- prised of three committees, each responsible for an area related to the laws of the sea. Cannon Concept One committee deals with issues within the economic zone, straits, resources in the continental shelf and the territorial sea. The boundaries of the terri- torial zone were traditionally based on the distance that a cannon ball could' be fired from off shore, approximately three miles. The committee extended the zone to 12 miles, giving countries exclusive rights for exploring, conserving and exploiting the resources with- in this area. The economic zone of national waters stretch 200 miles to sea, allowing them to exploit, conserve and explore inside its boundaries as well. The issue has become con- tentious, however, since con- flicting priorities exist be- tween the need to protect large quantities of fishing resources and the tapping of existing oil and gas supplies on the shelf. The problem has lead some countries, including Canada, to take unilateral action to protect stocks of fish which have decreased to dangerous- iy low levels, particularly on our east coast, he pointed out. Another committee, also partly engaged in solving the problem is responsible for preserving and researching the marine environment. Oi Spills One of the problems under this committee's jurisdiction is the spilling of oil from wrecked tankers such as those that have occurred recently off the American east coast. While inadequate sewage treatment facilities on land are the main sources of marine pollution, a 300,000 ton oil spill from a super tanker can only add to the problem, Mr. Elliott said. The third committee covers issues within the area de- clared as common to all countries outside national boundaries. This branch of UNCLOS is responsible for the amount of refining and exploration that goes on within international waters. The discovery that the sea bed is probably covered with minerals has resulted in at least four international mining consortiums to begin research into commercial operations. The deposits of nodules containing about 1.5 per cent nickel, 1.3 per cent copper and .5 per cent cobalt are found on the floor of the Pacific Ocean in a 200 to 300 mile radius stretching from southern Cali- fornia to Mexico and around the Hawaiian islands. Preventing unrestrained exploitation of these resources was the aim of the convention when they established the International Sea Bed Author- ity. A former president of the Mining Association of Canada, Mr. Elliott also explained that with mining rigs at $1 billion per unit, the capabilities remain primarily in the hands of the financially established countries. But about 77 developing nations within the conference have formed a body represent- ing their interests in an effort to participate in mining pro- jects themselves. Whether or not an agree- ment can be reached between the countries comprising the conference assembly remains to be seen, Mr. Elliott said. No doubt, however, the issues will come out during the sixth convention set to get underway in May this year in New York. Education with Terry Hawkins If you are eighteen years of age and have been out of secondary school day classes for at least one year, then according to the regulations you can be considered a mature student if you wish td return to education to get your grade 12 diploma. Depending on how many years you have been out of school and what type of work experience or related educa- tional experience you have had, a secondary school princ- ipal can award credits to you. He can give you up to twelve credits for maturity and experience. He can give you other credits for studies. you have done in connection with an apprenticeship and he can give credits for any course that in his opinion took 110 hours of study, even though the course was not taken in a secondary school. These mature student credits are added on top of any credits the individual already has from his old high school days if in fact the person attended high school. A small but important fact to note here is that anyone who ever attended high school and passed his courses, never loses the credit for those courses. They may not have been called credits in those days but they are easily converted into the new termin- ology. You never lose those credits nor do you have to repeat them, no matter how long ago you left school. And your records are still at your old school. In Ontario they are kept for seventy years. Looking at the mature student credit aspect again, if for example one has eight credits from his or her high school days they could possi- bly receive up to twelve more credits for maturity and experience. This could give them a total of twenty credits. They could also get a few more credits if they had taken an apprenticeship. Also the individual might have taken studies that demanded about the same amount of work as some secondary school courses and receive credit for them. Courses such as a registered nursing assistance course, or studies at a Bible College, an Agricultural School, Business School or subjects taken by correspond- ence unîght lit into this category. Courses taken as part of one's employment, upgrading or on the job in service training could ail be considered for credit. A few credits gained by courses of this type would bring the individual's total credits to 23 and only 27 are needed for a diploma. This means that many adults who do not now possess their grade 12 diploma could catch up very quickly if they decided to do so. There are a couple of factors one should realize concerning the mature student regula- tions. The credits granted for maturity and experience are only granted after the individ- ual has enrolled in school and completed one course. Also the individual must actually complete four senior Second- ary School courses before his diploma can be granted. This means that four of the 27 credits needed to graduate must be taken now or in the next few years. It should also be noted that an adult is potentially eligible for credits whether he or she chooses to enroll in day class or night credit classes at an Ontario Secondary School or in corres- pondence courses of the On-, tario Ministry of Education. If The Canadian Statesmnan, Bowmanville, February 23, 1977 5 an adult wants to get their uirst step is to contact a grade 12 diploma, it's verv Secondary School principal probable that they can. The for an interview. patchwork is having a FEBRUARY CLEARANCE SALE! 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