The lecture defines the concept of continental shelf, describes t he nature of rights and duties of the states upon it, then it discusses how any dispute relating to the claim over the continental shelf be resolved with reference to decided cases by the ICJ, ITLOS an Arbitral bodies.

1. Law of the Sea
Continental Shelf and It’s
Significance under
International Law of the
Sea
Presented by
S M Masum Billah
Associate Prof of Law
Jagannath University
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Global Continental Shelf

3. Continental Shelf (CS)
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5. Continental Shelf
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6. Natural Formation
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Irish Continental Shelf
Source: Geological Survey of
Ireland

8. The Norwegian CS
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9. Purpose of the Lesson
• What is Continental Shelf?
• Development of the Concept CS.
• How the outer edge determined?
• Rights on CS by the states
• Resources of CS.
• Difference between CS and EEZ.
• Delimitation of CS.
• Commission on the Limits of CS.
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10. What is CS?
• Not simple.
• As a concept easy of comprehension.
• Comes from Geography and Oceanography.
• A kind of pedestal on which the continents seems to
rest in the ocean.
• It slopes steadily and very gently down towards the
sea.
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11. General Definition
• A CS is the edge of a continent that lies under the
ocean.
• Continents are the seven main divisions of land on
earth. A CS extends from the coastline of a
continent to a drop-off point called the shelf break.
• From the break, the shelf descends toward the deep
ocean floor in what is called the continental slope.
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12. Formation of the CS
• Over many millions of years, organic and inorganic
materials formed CS. Inorganic material built up as rivers
carried sediment—bits of rock, soil, and gravel—to the
edges of the continents and into the ocean.
• These sediments gradually accumulated in layers at the
edges of continents. Organic material, such as the remains
of plants and animals, also accumulated.
• Many continental shelves were once dry land. Some
18,000 years ago.
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13. Zealandia
Microcontinent
Zealandia broke away from the
continents of Australia and
Antarctica millions of years ago.
The light blue color depicts a
large CS of shallow ocean
extending to the southeast of
Zealandia's largest land masses,
the South and North islands of
New Zealand, and northwest
towards the islands that make up
New Caledonia.
Zealandia gives an idea of CS.
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14. Legal Definition
• The submerged prolongation of the land
territory of the coastal state - the seabed and
subsoil of the submarine areas that extend
beyond its territorial sea to the outer edge of
the continental margin, or to a distance of
200 nm where the outer edge of the
continental margin does not extend up to that
distance.
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15. Contd.
• The continental margin consists of the
seabed and subsoil of the shelf, the
slope and the rise. It does not include
the deep ocean floor with its oceanic
ridges or the subsoil thereof.
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16. Breadth of the CS
• Even though they are underwater, CS are part of the
continent.
• The actual boundary of a continent is not its coastline,
but the edge of the CS.
• The width of the CS vary. Along parts of the U.S. state of
California, for example, the CS extends less than a
kilometer (.62 miles). But along the northern coast of
Siberia, the shelf extends about 1,290 kilometers (800
miles). The average width of a CS is 65 kilometers (40
miles).
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17. How is the outer edge determined?
• The coastal state may establish the outer limits
of its juridical continental shelf wherever the
continental margin extends beyond 200 n.m. by
taking into account the following matters:
• (i) continental slope;
• (ii)thickness of sedimentary rocks;
• (iii)geomorphological requirements
• (iv) distance and depth criteria;
• (v) any combination of these methods
-- (art 76, para 4 - 7).
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19. Rights of the Coastal State
• Coastal State exercises over the CS sovereign rights for the
purpose of exploring it and exploiting its natural
resources.
• Oil on the Shelf
• A lot of fuel we use is collected from beneath the
continental shelves. For example, 30 percent of all the oil
and 20 percent of the natural gas produced in the U.S.
comes from offshore drilling. Most of these sites are on
the North American continental shelf off of Alaska and
the Gulf of Mexico.
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20. Contd.
• The rights are exclusive in the sense that if the
coastal state does not explore the CS or exploit its
natural resources, no one may undertake these
activities without the express consent of the coastal
state.
• Most commercial exploitation from the sea, such
as metallic ore, non-metallic ore, and
hydrocarbon extraction, takes place on the
Continental Shelf.
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21. Contd.
• Inherent: The rights of the coastal state over the CS
do not depend on occupation, effective or notional,
or on any express proclamation.
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22. Contd.
• The natural resources consist of the mineral and
other non-living resources of the seabed and
subsoil together with living organisms belonging
to sedentary species, that is to say, organisms
which, at the harvestable stage, either are
immobile on or under the seabed or are unable
to move except in constant physical contact with
the seabed or the subsoil.
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23. Contd.
• Subject to its right to take reasonable measures for
the exploration of the CS, the exploitation of its
natural resources and the prevention, reduction and
control of pollution from pipelines, the coastal State
may not impede the laying or maintenance of such
cables or pipelines.
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24. Difference: CS v. EEZ
• According to MK Nawaz, EEZ differs from CS
in that it extends to the living and non-living
resources in the area of sea, the outer limits of
which are measured by distances rather than by
depth or exploitability.
• The legal regime of CS is largely governed by
international customary law. But LOS has created
an specific legal regime for EEZ and it has a sui
generic character.
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25. Difference: CS v. EEZ
• EEZ: Living-Non-Living both resources
(water/sea-bed/subsoil), CS: Only natural
resources/ Sedentary species ( sea-bed/sub-soil)
• In point of fact, 200 nm EEZ is less complicated
than CS.
• Professor Brown: “The basic fact is that the
EEZ is an entirely artificial man-made zone in
the sense that it bears no relation to natural
features such as the continental margin.”
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26. Difference: CS v. EEZ
• In Libyan Arab Jamahiriya v Malta ICJ
Report 1985, para 35, it was pointed
out that:
• “Although there can be CS where there
is no EEZ, sometimes there can not be
EEZ without corresponding
continental shelf.”
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27. Delimitation
• The delimitation of the CS between states with
opposite or adjacent coasts shall be effected by
agreement on the basis of international law, as
referred to in art 38 of the ICJ statute, in order to
achieve an equitable solution.
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28. Delimitation
• Pending agreement states concerned, in a spirit of
understanding and co-operation, shall make every
effort to enter into provisional arrangements of a
practical nature and, during this transitional period,
not to jeopardize or hamper the reaching of the final
agreement.
• Such arrangements shall be without prejudice to the
final delimitation.
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Case Law:
The Bay of Bengal Cases
(2012/2014)

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Grey Area: Bay of Bengal

31. Grey Area (Opposite)
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Nicaragua-Columbia Cases
(2012, 2016)

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North-Sea Continental
Shelf Cases (1969)

34. Fact
• Germany’s North Sea coast is concave, while the Netherlands’ and
Denmark’s coasts are convex. If the delimitation had been determined by
the equidistance rule (“drawing a line each point of which is equally distant
from each shore), Germany would have received a smaller portion of the
resource-rich shelf relative to the two other states.
• Thus, Germany argued that the length of the coastlines be used to
determine the delimitation. Germany wanted the ICJ to apportion the
Continental Shelf to the proportion of the size of the state’s adjacent land,
which Germany found to be ‘a just and equitable share’, and not by the rule
of equidistance.
• Denmark and Netherlands having ratified the 1958 Geneva Continental
Shelf Convention argued that equidistance principle were to be applied, as
Germany did not sign the Convention.
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35. The ICJ held:
The equidistance practice by 1969 was a subjective
element. A practice to be law should stem from a
notion of opinio juris sive necessitates ie. states
concerned must feel they are conforming to what
amounts to a legal obligation. Germany did not
feel that.
The Court urged the parties to take note of
Germany’s concave coast which may justify a
deviation from the equidistance rule. In
subsequent negotiations, the states granted to
Germany most of the additional shelf it sought.
The cases are viewed as an example of “equity
praeter legem”—that is, equity “beyond the law”—
when a judge supplements the law with equitable
rules necessary to decide the case at hand.
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36. The CLCS
• The Commission on the Limits of Continental Shelf
(CLCS).
• States usually can determine the 200 nm limit of Continental
Shelf. In case of dispute, they can decide to settle the matter by
a judicial forum.
• However, for determining the CS beyond the 200 nm, a state
can refer the matter to the CLCS.
• A state needs to submit the particulars of such limits, along
with supporting scientific and technical data to the CLCS.
• Bangladesh has made submission twice (ie 2011, 2020), the
hearing on the latest will be heard by the CLCS soon.
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37. Thank You
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