Legal weakness in a country with two seas and three coastal zones

Colombia is a marine and coastal country from an environmental perspective, but not from a legal perspective. In the country there is no a Law of Seas and Coasts that regulates the uses and activities that are developed in... [ view full abstract ]

Colombia is a marine and coastal country from an environmental perspective, but not from a legal perspective. In the country there is no a Law of Seas and Coasts that regulates the uses and activities that are developed in this territory. The findings of an investigation are presented to identify the causes of this situation, from the review of legislative initiatives presented in the Parliament since 1999. The methodology was based on exploratory, documentary and analytical research techniques, with the support of record cards. As a result, 16224 official documents were identified in the period 1999-2016, of which 2.1% (n = 336) had a direct, indirect or probable relationship with marine-coastal issues. From these 336 documents, the legislative process of 80 bills was reconstructed, of which 51 were directly related to marine-coastal matters and 29 has an indirect relationship. As a result, the procedural, political and thematic tendencies of the bills with a direct relationship were analyzed, which focused on five themes: territorial planning, human settlements, extractive activities, transport and maritime trade, and tourism and recreation. As conclusions, a structural weakness was identified in the procedure of legislative procedure in Colombia. A high dispersion of efforts by parliamentarians was also identified, who have little knowledge of marine-coastal issues. Finally, the creation of a Marine and-Coastal Legislative Observatory is recommended.