2001 Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage

The UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, adopted in 2001, is intended to enable States to better protect their submerged cultural heritage.

The main principles laid out in the Convention are the obligation to preserve underwater cultural heritage, the prioritization of in-situ preservation and the stipulation that underwater cultural heritage should not be commercially exploited for trade or speculation, and that it should not be irretrievably dispersed.

For more information, visit the website of the 2001 Convention.

Source(s): http://www.unesco.org/new/en/culture/themes/underwater-cultural-heritage/2001-convention/