L05 - Maritime Legal Zones

Question 1

What are the Maritime Zones as defined by UNCLOS?

Answer 1

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) establishes various maritime zones that outline the rights and jurisdiction of coastal states over adjacent waters.

1. Baseline
2. Internal waters
3. Territorial zone
4. Contiguous zone
5. EEZ
6. Continental Shelf
7. High Seas
8. International Seabed Area

Question 2

What is the Baseline?

Answer 2

Determined by connecting points on the coastline - it is a line along the coast from which the seaward limits of maritime zones are measured.

Question 3

What are the Internal waters?

Answer 3

These are waters on the landward side of the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.

Internal waters are subject to full sovereignty of the coastal state, similar to its land territory.

Foreign vessels have no right of passage within internal waters.

Question 4

What is the Territorial Sea?

Answer 4

1. Belt of sea ≤12 nm from the baseline.
2. Right of innocent passage (explain), but coastal state exercises sovereign rights and may arrest foreign ships.

Question 5

What is the Contiguous zone?

Answer 5

The contiguous zone extends from the outer limit of the territorial sea up to 24 nautical miles from the baseline.

In this zone, coastal states can exercise control to prevent and punish infringements of customs, fiscal, immigration, or sanitary laws and regulations within their territory or territorial sea.

In its contiguous zone, a coastal State may exercise the control necessary to prevent the infringement of its customs, fiscal, immigration, or sanitary laws and regulations within its territory or territorial sea, and punish infringement of those laws and regulations committed within its territory or territorial sea.

Question 6

What is the EEZ?

Answer 6

1. The EEZ extends up to 200 nautical miles from the baseline.
2. Foreign vessels have right of passage, so do aircrafts over this zone.
3. The coastal state has jurisdiction of environmental activities; they have sovereign rights for the purpose of exploring, exploiting, conserving, and managing natural resources, both living and non-living, of the seabed, subsoil, and water column

Question 7

What is the Continental Shelf?

Answer 7

1. The continental shelf comprises the seabed and subsoil of submarine areas adjacent (close to) to the coastal state but outside the territorial sea.
2. areas that extend beyond the territorial sea throughout the natural prolongation of the land territory to the outer edge of the continental margin OR The continental shelf extends 200-350 nm from the baseline
3. coastal state has the right to explore and exploit the natural resources in this area, but this right does not extend to other materials such as shipwrecks.
4. No jurisdictions on waters and its
   resources.

Question 8

What are the High Seas?

Answer 8

1. The high seas refer to areas of the ocean beyond any national jurisdiction.
2. They are open to all states and subject to freedom of navigation, overflight, fishing, laying of submarine cables, and scientific research.

3.There is obligation to cooperate
with other states in resource management & conservation.

Question 9

What are the International Seabed Area?

Answer 9

all activities on seabed beyond national jurisdiction controlled by International Seabed Authority.

The international seabed area – the part under ISA jurisdiction – is defined as “the seabed and ocean floor and the subsoil thereof, beyond the limits of national jurisdiction.

Question 10

draw the zones!

Answer 10

https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=64731a106f604e99&sca_upv=1&q=continental+shelf+unclos&uds=ADvngMipajioxIlpJYA27QdZAqwgDjW_g8PrY9b2hhWsinTg1jaYyVe20ldts4sCdlYtuCyulxET-3JncKmXv_Gnk6x4hP7v30X7gKKIg2dwtqkejq31rJNtuxd8auaMVRbuFQromnhuRvgXjzv_RBCVJk-ey7cfWkPsxT9XUdmfnOG4uN_tLE-i1mM9cEB_QCGjPAJ4LUV3EMJIOsxNP4WaXB8P1bOd0-sDJ0tTHV0xdoejumk-22Cju9iqW8fc1s-If6jtVijPGH0dfnhsEzjLqE8jvZ-zXec-JVMojWPTnwmlxK47NLFHManOiWJB171XK7uaEcpo&udm=2&prmd=ivnmbtz&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjZ882F1pSGAxWsaEEAHZQUClUQtKgLegQIDxAB&biw=1440&bih=694&dpr=2#vhid=0T7TdqqnjsEnLM&vssid=mosaic