United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 37

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

 

Article 78
Legal status of the superjacent waters and air space and the
rights and freedoms of other States

1. The rights of the coastal State over the Continental Shelf do not affect
the legal status of the superjacent waters or of the air space above those
waters.

2. The exercise of the rights of the coastal State over the continental
shelf must not infringe or result in any unjustifiable interference with
navigation and other rights and freedoms of other States as provided for in
this Convention.

Article 79
Submarine cables and pipelines on the Continental Shelf

1. All States are entitled to lay submarine cables and pipelines on the
continental shelf, in accordance with the provisions of this article.

2. Subject to its right to take reasonable measures for the exploration of
the continental shelf, 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.

3. The delineation of the course for the laying of such pipelines on the
continental shelf is subject to the consent of the coastal State.

4. Nothing in this Part affects the right of the coastal State to establish
conditions for cables or pipelines entering its territory or territorial
sea, or its jurisdiction over cables and pipelines constructed or used in
connection with the exploration of its continental shelf or exploitation of
its resources or the operations of artificial islands, installations and
structures under its jurisdiction.

5. When laying submarine cables or pipelines, States shall have due regard
to cables or pipelines already in position. In particular, possibilities of
repairing existing cables or pipelines shall not be prejudiced.

Article 80
Artificial islands, installations and structures
on the continental shelf

Article 60 applies mutatis mutandis to artificial islands, installations
and structures on the continental shelf.

Article 81
Drilling on the continental shelf

The coastal State shall have the exclusive right to authorize and regulate
drilling on the continental shelf for all purposes.

Article 82
Payments and contributions with respect to the exploitation
of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles

1. The coastal State shall make payments or contributions in kind in
respect of the exploitation of the non-living resources of the continental
shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from the baselines from which the breadth
of the territorial sea is measured.

2. The payments and contributions shall be made annually with respect to
all production at a site after the first five years of production at that
site. For the sixth year, the rate of payment or contribution shall be 1
per cent of the value or volume of production at the site. The rate shall
increase by 1 per cent for each subsequent year until the twelfth year and
shall remain at 7 per cent thereafter. Production does not include
resources used in connection with exploitation.

3. A developing State which is a net importer of a mineral resource
produced from its continental shelf is exempt from making such payments or
contributions in respect of that mineral resource.

4. The payments or contributions shall be made through the Authority, which
shall distribute them to States Parties to this Convention, on the basis of
equitable sharing criteria, taking into account the interests and needs of
developing States, particularly the least developed and the land-locked
among them.

Article 83
Delimitation of the continental shelf between States with
opposite or adjacent coasts

1. The delimitation of the continental shelf between States with opposite
or adjacent coasts shall be effected by agreement on the basis of
international law, as referred to in Article 38 of the Statute of the
International Court of Justice , in order to achieve an equitable solution.

2. If no agreement can be reached within a reasonable period of time, the
States concerned shall resort to the procedures provided for in Part XV.

3. Pending agreement as provided for in paragraph 1, the 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.

4. Where there is an agreement in force between the States concerned,
questions relating to the delimitation of the continental shelf shall be
determined in accordance with the provisions of that agreement.

Article 84
Charts and lists of geographical co-ordinates

1. Subject to this Part, the outer limit lines of the continental shelf and
the lines of delimitation drawn in accordance with article 83 shall be
shown on charts of a scale or scales adequate for ascertaining their
position. Where appropriate, lists of geographical co-ordinates of points,
specifying the geodetic datum, may be substituted for such outer limit
lines or lines of delimitation.

2. The coastal State shall give due publicity to such charts or lists of
graphical co-ordinates and shall deposit a copy of each such chart or list
with the Secretary-General of the United Nations and, in the case of those
showing the outer limit lines of the continental shelf, with the
Secretary-General of the Authority.

Article 85
Tunnelling

This Part does not prejudice the right of the coastal State to exploit the
subsoil by means of tunnelling, irrespective of the depth of water above
the subsoil.

 

Conclusion

Notes

See Also

References and Further Reading

About the Author/s and Reviewer/s

Author: international


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