TR
What Are the Continental Shelf and the Exclusive Economic Zone?
Continental Shelf
The continental shelf is the natural prolongation of a coastal state into its maritime area. The concept of the continental shelf first emerged in 1945 with the Truman Proclamation. With this proclamation, the United States declared that all resources on and beneath the seabed within its continental shelf belonged to the USA. The definition of the continental shelf was subsequently adopted internationally and accepted as a rule.
The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea defines the continental shelf as extending beyond the coastal state's territorial sea to the outer edge of the continental margin, or, where that edge lies at a shorter distance, to a distance of 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the territorial sea is measured. The coastal state holds rights over the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas throughout this zone, which is the natural prolongation of its land territory. If the distance does not reach 200 miles, the country's continental shelf is extended to 200 miles. However, if the outer edge of a coastal state's continental margin exceeds 200 nautical miles, a limit of 350 nautical miles from the baselines is applied.
The right to the continental shelf is exercised by a coastal state without any declaration. States with a coastline possess a continental shelf naturally, without the need for subsequent acquisition or proclamation. States' natural right to the continental shelf was confirmed by the 1969 ruling of the International Court of Justice as existing "ab initio" (from the beginning) and "ipso facto" (by the fact itself).
Exclusive Economic Zone
The concept of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) refers to coastal states acquiring certain economic rights over living and non-living resources within an area extending 200 nautical miles from the baseline of the territorial sea. The EEZ concept also includes continental shelf rights. It entered international law with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The EEZ grants the coastal state rights regarding the management (such as exploration, exploitation and conservation) of living and non-living resources in the waters superjacent to the seabed, on the seabed and in its subsoil, and likewise grants sovereign rights over the use of areas from which energy can be obtained, such as currents and wind.
Under Article 75 of UNCLOS, a coastal state is required to publish charts and lists of geographical coordinates of its EEZ limits and to deposit them with the UN.
Declaring an EEZ is also of critical importance for the coastal state in terms of fisheries. With an EEZ declaration, fishing in the declared area is removed from international regulations and placed under the regulatory authority of the coastal state. With the EEZ declaration, the right to set fishing quotas also falls within the coastal state's jurisdiction.
Differences Between the Continental Shelf and the Exclusive Economic Zone
The continental shelf is a natural right for coastal states that exists without any declaration. The EEZ, on the other hand, must be duly declared and deposited with the UN.
While the continental shelf provides rights over the non-living resources on and beneath the seabed, the EEZ, in addition to all continental shelf rights, grants the coastal state sovereign rights that generate economic gain regarding the management, such as exploration, exploitation and conservation, of the living natural resources in the area.
[1] Yaycı, Cihat. “Sorular ve Cevaplar ile Münhasır Ekonomik Bölge (MEB) Kavramı.” Deniz Basımevi Müdürlüğü (2019): 6.
[2] Yaycı (2019).
[3] Yaycı, Cihat. "Yunanistan Talepleri (Ege Sorunları) Soru ve Cevaplarla." Türk Tarih Kurumu (2020): 137-138. & UNCLOS. 76, definition of the continental shelf.
[4] Yaycı (2019).
