Exclusive Economic Zone

by

Gemma Andreone

• LAST MODIFIED: 22 August 2023
• DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199796953-0247

Introduction

The legal nature and the economic, political, and social implications of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) have been widely explored and examined by the doctrine over the years (O’Connell 1982, cited under Handbooks and Articles on the Law of the Sea; and Attard 1987, Orrego Vicuña 1989, Franckx and Gautier 2003, Nelson 2008, Posner and Sykes 2010, and Andreone 2015, all cited under Specific Literature on the EEZ). Yet, twenty-five years after the entry into force of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (hereinafter, LOSC), the EEZ is still a matter of debate among authors and a cause of international disputes. These latter result from the many interpretation conflicts that incessantly arise when the states act with the EEZ or implement the related convention’s provisions (Roach and Smith 2012, cited under Handbooks and Articles on the Law of the Sea). In particular, the main issues at stake are the compliance of LOSC provisions on the EEZ with customary international law and the possible evolution of this latter (Treves 1990, cited under Handbooks and Articles on the Law of the Sea), the crucial issue of coastal states’ creeping jurisdiction over new uses of the sea (Oxman 2006, cited under Specific Literature on the EEZ), and finally, the risk of excessive restriction to the freedom of navigation, as the original and never-ending general principle of the law of the sea (Rigaldies 1998, cited under Specific Literature on the EEZ). The EEZ codification in the LOSC was a revolutionary compromise of the interests of coastal and flag states, as well as the general interests of the international community as a whole. It was widely welcomed for having unified the regime of the waters superjacent to the seabed and of the seabed and its subsoil, becoming a multifunctional zone (Kwiatkowska 1989, cited under Specific Literature on the EEZ, and Lucchini and Voelckel 1996, cited under Handbooks and Articles on the Law of the Sea). Against this background, the EEZ remains a concept in a permanent state of flux and its legal regime will be inevitably affected by the future development of international practice in the law of the sea (Beckman and Davenport 2013, cited under Specific Literature on the EEZ).

Specific Literature on the EEZ

There is a vast literature on the subject of the EEZ. The topic is of particular interest as Art. 56, par. 1, letter a) of the LOSC grants sovereign rights to the coastal state for the purpose of exploration, exploitation, conservation, and management of all biological and non-biological natural resources of the waters superjacent to the seabed and of the seabed and ocean floor of the EEZ, as well as rights functional to other activities connected with the exploration and economic exploitation of the zone. Andreone 2015, Kwiatkowska 1989, and Nelson 2008 are dedicated to the main characteristics of the EEZ in the light of the LOSC provisions; Nelson, in particular, focuses on fisheries as the main domain of the coastal states’ competence. Furthermore, about the LOSC provisions, it is interesting that Beckman and Davenport 2013 investigates whether and to what extent the relevant provisions of the LOSC on the EEZ have withstood the test of time. Several authors have worked from different perspectives on state practice relating to the EEZ and its criticalities: among these are Franckx and Gautier 2003, Rigaldies 1998, and Orrego Vicuña 1989, which focuses on a Latin American perspective. Oxman 2006 proposes a focus on the impact of the creeping jurisdiction of coastal states on the law of the sea, with particular attention to the EEZ. Finally, Posner and Sykes 2010 offers a new perspective, analyzing the economic implications of the law of the sea and the EEZ.

• Andreone, Gemma. “Economic Exclusive Zone.” In The Oxford Handbook of the Law of the Sea. Edited by Donald R. Rothwell, Alex G. Oude Elferink, Karen N. Scott, and Tim Stephens, 159–180. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2015.

  This chapter is devoted to the main features of the EEZ in the light of the LOSC provisions contained in Part V and in the other relevant provisions of this treaty, as well as in the light of the current state practice.

• Attard, David Joseph. The Exclusive Economic Zone in International Law. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987.

  This monograph is an early and detailed study on the scope and effects of the EEZ legal arrangement on the international contemporary society, just after the conclusion of the Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea.

• Beckman, Robert, and Tara Davenport. “The EEZ Regime: Reflections after Thirty Years.” In Securing the Ocean for the Next Generation: LOSI Conference Papers 2012, 21–24 May 2012, Seoul, Korea. Edited by Harry N. Scheiber and Moon Sang Kwon. Berkeley: University of California, 2013.

  The authors investigate whether and to what extent the relevant provisions of the LOSC on the EEZ have withstood the test of time. The analysis of recent state practice is particularly useful when searching for the impact of coastal states’ creeping jurisdiction on the emergence of new customary provisions.

• Franckx, Erik, and Philippe Gautier. The Exclusive Economic Zone and the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982–2000: A Preliminary Assessment of State Practice. Brussels: Bruylant, 2003.

  Volume collecting the presentations to the international conference that the two eminent editors convened in 2000 for an authoritative assessment of state practice relating to the EEZ. A number of renowned experts contributed with an analysis of international and national practice.

• Kwiatkowska, Barbara. The 200 Mile Exclusive Economic Zone in the New Law of the Sea. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Martinus Nijhoff, 1989.

  DOI: 10.1163/9789004481626

  An early and accurate monograph on one of the major innovations of the LOSC, as the author admits. This text highlights the growing awareness of both developing and industrialized countries as well as the importance of enhancing international cooperation in the maritime domain, still a topical approach. 397 pp.

• Nelson, Dolliver. “Exclusive Economic Zone.” In Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law. Edited by Anne Peters and Rüdiger Wolfrum. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.

  Comprehensive overview on the main subjects of the EEZ legal regime. Particular attention is devoted to fisheries as the main domain of the coastal states’ competence.

• Orrego Vicuña, Francisco. The Exclusive Economic Zone: Regime and Legal Nature under International Law. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1989.

  A renowned monographic contribution from an authoritative participant in the UNCLOS III, offering a broad overview on the dynamics of the EEZ.

• Oxman, Bernard. “The Territorial Temptation: A Siren Song at Sea.” American Journal of International Law 100 (2006): 830.

  DOI: 10.1017/S0002930000031912

  Conceptual work by an eminent author on the impact of coastal states’ creeping jurisdiction on the law of the sea, with special emphasis on the EEZ and the effects of the “territorial temptation” on the marine environment.

• Posner, Eric A., and Alan O. Sykes. “Economic Foundations of the Law of the Sea.” American Journal of International Law 104 (2010): 569–596.

  DOI: 10.5305/amerjintelaw.104.4.0569

  This work analyzes the economic implications of the law of the sea and of the EEZ by examining the most important features of the LOSC. The economic perspective offered by the legal assessment is rather new and challenging.

• Rigaldies, Francis. “La zone économique exclusive dans la pratique des états.” Canadian Yearbook of International Law 35 (1998): 3–55.

  DOI: 10.1017/S0069005800006585

  The author presents a wide-ranging overview of international practice and addresses the many criticalities emerging from the implementation of the EEZ. The result seems to confirm the main acceptance by state practice of the LOSC provisions regulating the basic principles of the EEZ.