زهرا محمودی کردی

Seas are the most important and unexplored and unknown ecosystems and the largest source of biodiversity on earth, which make up 90% of the biosphere. Therefore, it is necessary to preserve the marine environment as a precious asset and heritage against the damages caused by human activities, including international shipping. One of the international means to achieve this aim is the port state control (PSC) mechanism, PSC which is rooted in the traditional principle of free access of ships to the ports, also international conventions and regional memorandum of understandings )MoU’s( is considered complementary to the competencies of the flag state for environmental protection and maritime safety, allows the port states to assess the compliance of ships with relevant international and regional regulations, and to carry out a non-discriminatory inspection of foreign ships entering their ports. this paper review and criticize the role of current PSC mechanisms in the protection of the marine environment. To that end, use of the descriptive-analytical method to explaining the concept and legal foundations of PSC and the most important environmental challenges caused by the Increasing growth of international shipping and analyze the role of PSC. This study's findings provide that, the international PSC regime suffers some defects, accordingly to be more effective needs to mutation, in a way that includes new environmental damages, as well as, increase international convergence and integration in its Implementation This goal is achieved through the conclusion of a global MoU.

Procedural environmental law , also known as environmental democracy consists of three Pillars , which include the right of access to environmental information , the right of participation in environmental decision-making procedures and the right of access to justice. Environmental democracy is granted to citizens for their empowerment in order to protect their health against environmental damage and to ensure the environment. The aim of this study is to investigate the above rights in the international documents, jurisprudence and domestic legal systems of some leading states and then analyse the Iranian legal system through descriptive-analytical method. We found that Iranian legal system still suffers from some gaps despite the positive efforts to achieve environmental democracy in recent years. The most important issues are the lack of specific rules on people’s access to environmental information, a favorable system for citizen participation in environmental decisions , and a dedicated environmental court.