The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea contains
provisions on depositing the charts and/or lists of geographical coordinates of
points with the secretary-general of the United Nations. Due to the collection
of data and the production of charts in accordance with the relevant regulations
involve complex marine scientific and technological issues, the implementation
of the deposit obligations under the Convention of the coastal States is generally
slow at present. In order to assess the difficulties faced by the coastal States in
fulfilling the deposit of charts, the Secretariat prepared a note at the request of
the twenty-ninth Meeting of States Parties. This paper details the legal framework
of the depositing obligation, an overview of the practice of coastal States and of
the secretary-general, and the challenges faced by the development of technical
standards and guidelines for depositing the charts and/or lists of geographical
coordinates. It also makes a preliminary analysis on the impact of sea level rise
on the legal status of the deposited charts.