Exclusive economic zone

The exclusive economic zone (ZEE) is a maritime space on which the Coastal state exerts sovereign economic material rights.

Definition

The concept of ZEE finds its legal basis in the Convention of the United Nations on the right of the sea (or Convention known as of Montego Bay, signed on December 10th, 1982).

The exclusive economic zone does not extend beyond 200 marine miles from the base lines from which the width of the territorial Mer is measured. (Article 57).

In the exclusive economic zone, Coastal state a:

of the sovereign rights for purposes of exploration and exploitation, conservation and natural, biological stock management or not biological, superjacent water at sea-beds, sea-beds and of their basement, like with regard to other activities tending to the exploration and the exploitation of the zone to economic ends, such as the energy production starting from water, of the currents and the winds;
jurisdiction with regard to the installation and the use of artificial islands, of installations and works, the marine scientific research, the protection and the safeguarding of the seamen circle.

Juridically, when it exists the ZEE superimposes on the continental shelf; but whereas the rights relating to the continental shelf are independent of any claim, those related to the ZEE exist only if the Coastal state explicitly created this one, in the respect of the Right of the sea and the rights of the other Coastal states.

Extension of the ZEE

Each Coastal state can decide to create or not a ZEE; it can then arbitrarily fix of it the width, which cannot however be higher than 200 miles counted starting from the base Line. The majority of the States chose a ZEE of 200 miles.

When the base lines of two States are distant less than 400 miles, the limit separating their ZEE must be fixed by mutual agreement (see maritime Délimitation) or by decision of a qualified international court (the International Court of Justice or International court of the right of the sea, for example).

In the Mediterranean, very few States created a ZEE; if all did it, any point of the Mediterranean would be in a zone under jurisdiction of a State. Certains States however created zones where they exert part of the rights (fishing rights, for example) or duties (environmental protection, in particular) attached to the ZEE; it is in particular the case of the France, which created in 2004 in the Mediterranean a ecological Protection zone.

In order to protect its fishing resources, in particular in légines , France constituted around the southern islands (TAAF) a ZEE actively prospected by the poachers with the trawl line. See on this subject Pirate of légines by Jacques Nougier ED. Harmattan 201 p. (2003) ISBN: 2-7475-4459-1 and Fishing and piracy in the quarantièmes howling by Marcel Barbarin ED. Ouest-France 349 p. (2002) ISBN: 2-7373-2967-1

See the general article Right of the sea .

ZEE by country

External bonds

Site of the the United Nations: http://www.un.org/french/law/los/unclos/part5.htm
Cartography of the zones format SIG: http://www.vliz.be/vmdcdata/marbound/

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