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S. Fletcher
but in recent history national jurisdiction has increasingly encroached on this (Gubbay,
1993). This is primarily due to the continued efforts of the United Nations to develop a
Law of the Sea and more recently UNCLOS III.
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The third United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III) was the
most recent in a series of international conferences seeking to develop a regulatory
framework for the use and exploitation of the oceans. The first conference in this
process was the League of Nations Codification Conference in 1930 which sought to
formalise existing customary law relating to the use of the sea. Following the Second
World War, negotiations concentrated on the contentious issue of control over
continental shelf resources. However, agreement was not achieved and the view
developed that only a complete package of new measures would suffice to resolve the
situation. This resulted in the convening of UNCLOS III in 1983 and the subsequent
Law of the Sea Convention which represented such a package (Haines, 1995).
UNCLOS III entered into force on 16 November 1994, when the 60th nation
ratified the convention. The preamble to the Convention describes the document as "a
legal order for the oceans which will facilitate international communication, and will
promote the peaceful uses of the seas and oceans, the equitable and efficient utilization
of their resources, the conservation of their living resources, and the study, protection
and preservation of the marine environment" (UN, 1983). UNCLOS III recognises 5
maritime zones over which coastal states have jurisdiction (Herriman, 1992). The
most significant are Interior Waters, Territorial Waters and the Exclusive Economic
Zone:
Internal Waters: These are defined as waters landward of the baseline. They may
include estuaries, bays, or areas landward of nearshore islands.
Territorial Waters: (baseline - 12 nautical miles) these are considered to be the
territory of the coastal state, however, foreign vessels are given the right of innocent
passage;
Exclusive Economic Zone: (edge of territorial waters - 200 nautical miles) This is an
area of claimed ocean "lying seawards of and adjacent to territorial waters, within
which the claimant state has exclusive authority over the resources of the sea and the
seabed" (Prescott, 1985). The powers conferred in the EEZ are a sub-set of those in
territorial waters, therefore it is commonly stated that the EEZ extends 200nm from the
baseline.
The declaration of an EEZ represents a significant increase in the rights and
responsibilities of coastal states and a major expansion in the area of ocean falling
under the jurisdiction of individual states. The EEZ is therefore considered to be the
most significant provision within the Law of the Sea relating to marine resource
exploitation and as such requires further scrutiny.
S. Fletcher
but in recent history national jurisdiction has increasingly encroached on this (Gubbay,
1993). This is primarily due to the continued efforts of the United Nations to develop a
Law of the Sea and more recently UNCLOS III.
United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
The third United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III) was the
most recent in a series of international conferences seeking to develop a regulatory
framework for the use and exploitation of the oceans. The first conference in this
process was the League of Nations Codification Conference in 1930 which sought to
formalise existing customary law relating to the use of the sea. Following the Second
World War, negotiations concentrated on the contentious issue of control over
continental shelf resources. However, agreement was not achieved and the view
developed that only a complete package of new measures would suffice to resolve the
situation. This resulted in the convening of UNCLOS III in 1983 and the subsequent
Law of the Sea Convention which represented such a package (Haines, 1995).
UNCLOS III entered into force on 16 November 1994, when the 60th nation
ratified the convention. The preamble to the Convention describes the document as "a
legal order for the oceans which will facilitate international communication, and will
promote the peaceful uses of the seas and oceans, the equitable and efficient utilization
of their resources, the conservation of their living resources, and the study, protection
and preservation of the marine environment" (UN, 1983). UNCLOS III recognises 5
maritime zones over which coastal states have jurisdiction (Herriman, 1992). The
most significant are Interior Waters, Territorial Waters and the Exclusive Economic
Zone:
Internal Waters: These are defined as waters landward of the baseline. They may
include estuaries, bays, or areas landward of nearshore islands.
Territorial Waters: (baseline - 12 nautical miles) these are considered to be the
territory of the coastal state, however, foreign vessels are given the right of innocent
passage;
Exclusive Economic Zone: (edge of territorial waters - 200 nautical miles) This is an
area of claimed ocean "lying seawards of and adjacent to territorial waters, within
which the claimant state has exclusive authority over the resources of the sea and the
seabed" (Prescott, 1985). The powers conferred in the EEZ are a sub-set of those in
territorial waters, therefore it is commonly stated that the EEZ extends 200nm from the
baseline.
The declaration of an EEZ represents a significant increase in the rights and
responsibilities of coastal states and a major expansion in the area of ocean falling
under the jurisdiction of individual states. The EEZ is therefore considered to be the
most significant provision within the Law of the Sea relating to marine resource
exploitation and as such requires further scrutiny.