When do international waters start

In localities where the coastline is deeply indented and cut into, or if there is a fringe of islands along the coast in its immediate vicinity, the method of straight baselines joining appropriate points may be employed in drawing the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured.

Where because of the presence of a delta and other natural conditions the coastline is highly unstable, the appropriate points may be selected along the furthest seaward extent of the low-water line and, notwithstanding subsequent regression of the low-water line, the straight baselines shall remain effective until changed by the coastal State in accordance with this Convention.

The drawing of straight baselines must not depart to any appreciable extent from the general direction of the coast, and the sea areas lying within the lines must be sufficiently closely linked to the land domain to be subject to the regime of internal waters.

Straight baselines shall not be drawn to and from low-tide elevations, unless lighthouses or similar installations which are permanently above sea level have been built on them or except in instances where the drawing of baselines to and from such elevations has received general international recognition.

Where the method of straight baselines is applicable under paragraph 1, account may be taken, in determining particular baselines, of economic interests peculiar to the region concerned, the reality and the importance of which are clearly evidenced by long usage. The system of straight baselines may not be applied by a State in such a manner as to cut off the territorial sea of another State from the high seas or an exclusive economic zone.

Except as provided in Part IV, waters on the landward side of the baseline of the territorial sea form part of the internal waters of the State. Where the establishment of a straight baseline in accordance with the method set forth in article 7 has the effect of enclosing as internal waters areas which had not previously been considered as such, a right of innocent passage as provided in this Convention shall exist in those waters.

If a river flows directly into the sea, the baseline shall be a straight line across the mouth of the river between points on the low-water line of its banks.

This article relates only to bays the coasts of which belong to a single State. For the purposes of this Convention, a bay is a well-marked indentation whose penetration is in such proportion to the width of its mouth as to contain land-locked waters and constitute more than a mere curvature of the coast.

An indentation shall not, however, be regarded as a bay unless its area is as large as, or larger than, that of the semi-circle whose diameter is a line drawn across the mouth of that indentation. For the purpose of measurement, the area of an indentation is that lying between the low-water mark around the shore of the indentation and a line joining the low-water mark of its natural entrance points.

Where, because of the presence of islands, an indentation has more than one mouth, the semi-circle shall be drawn on a line as long as the sum total of the lengths of the lines across the different mouths. Islands within an indentation shall be included as if they were part of the water area of the indentation.

If the distance between the low-water marks of the natural entrance points of a bay does not exceed 24 nautical miles, a closing line may be drawn between these two low-water marks, and the waters enclosed thereby shall be considered as internal waters. Where the distance between the low-water marks of the natural entrance points of a bay exceeds 24 nautical miles, a straight baseline of 24 nautical miles shall be drawn within the bay in such a manner as to enclose the maximum area of water that is possible with a line of that length.

The foregoing provisions do not apply to so-called "historic" bays, or in any case where the system of straight baselines provided for in article 7 is applied. For the purpose of delimiting the territorial sea, the outermost permanent harbour works which form an integral part of the harbour system are regarded as forming part of the coast. Off-shore installations and artificial islands shall not be considered as permanent harbour works. Roadsteads which are normally used for the loading, unloading and anchoring of ships, and which would otherwise be situated wholly or partly outside the outer limit of the territorial sea, are included in the territorial sea.

A low-tide elevation is a naturally formed area of land which is surrounded by and above water at low tide but submerged at high tide. Where a low-tide elevation is situated wholly or partly at a distance not exceeding the breadth of the territorial sea from the mainland or an island, the low-water line on that elevation may be used as the baseline for measuring the breadth of the territorial sea.

Where a low-tide elevation is wholly situated at a distance exceeding the breadth of the territorial sea from the mainland or an island, it has no territorial sea of its own. The coastal State may determine baselines in turn by any of the methods provided for in the foregoing articles to suit different conditions.

Though we provide both dyanmic and static datasets, we recommend using our dynamic data services to ensure the most up-to-date version of the U. We provide an archive of past updates to explain what has changed in each release of the data. The WMS link leads to the GetCapabilities page, which provides easy-to-read, detailed information about the data as well as the necessary link to load the data into a GIS or web mapping application.

The dataset includes specific information about each maritime boundary segment. Attributes for the data are: Boundary ID: a unique identifier of the boundary segment Region Name: region in which the boundary is located Type of Feature: features can either be a land boundary between the U. Publication Date: date the digital boundary was published online Approval Date: date the U.

Baseline Committee approved the updates Legal Authority: treaty, agreement, or proclamation granting the government authority to establish the limit or boundary.

The document supplements the parent metadata record. Unilateral Claim: some maritime boundary claims have not been agreed upon by all parties. These boundaries are designated as unilateral claims. Because of a difference in the chart printing schedule and the digital data update schedule, the digital data and the paper charts might not always be identical. In the event that the digital product and the paper charts differ, the maritime limits and boundaries on the paper charts take precedence.

For those seeking the ambulatory three nautical mile territorial sea limit, we recommend that you use the seamless raster nautical chart service provided by the Office of Coast Survey.

For hundreds of years, the marine environment was free from regulation of fishing, shipping, and resource exploitation. Over time, coastal States countries had an increased interest in national security and the enforcement of laws to protect its commerce and marine resources. As a result, a balance was needed to maintain the freedom of navigation that many foreign maritime interests had relied upon. This need for balance is captured in the history of the law of the sea.

The extent to which a nation could control its coastal waters was largely based on the reach of its cannons on the shore. In the U. In , President Truman issued a proclamation asserting rights to explore and exploit the oil and gas resources of the continental shelf outside of the 3 nm territorial sea. In , the U. Congress enacted legislation over the federal and state control of the continental shelf.

In , international conventions were concluded in Geneva on the territorial sea, contiguous zone and continental shelf. The concept of a fishery conservation zone was born in another Truman Proclamation but Congress did not enact laws regarding a nm fishery conservation zone until This evolved into a zone whereby a coastal nation had exclusive control over all economic exploration and exploitation of the natural resources off its coast.

Subject to ancient customs where nations should provide safe harbor to ships in danger or distress force majure , the U. While warships are generally immune from laws and regulations, the U. The contiguous zone is a buffer to the territorial sea, and within it, the U.

In addition, the U. It overlaps the EEZ which extends from the territorial sea out to nm. A lawyer can review your options with you and help you take legal action against a negligent employer. The United States exercises sovereignty over its territorial waters, which begin at the low-water level baseline as marked on maritime maps, the:.

The contiguous zone is next to the territorial sea where the U. The exclusive economic zone encompasses the contiguous zone; the U. Further, the U. Workers must qualify as a seaman, which means you spend most of your time on navigable waters in service of a vessel. This includes international navigable waters. One potential scenario where negligence might cause or contribute to injuries in international waters is if a vessel is a victim of piracy.

If the employer was negligent in deterring or managing a pirate attack, injured maritime employees may file a claim. The Jones Act may present a variety of complex issues, and many maritime workers are unsure of their rights after injury beyond intentional water boundaries. Contact an attorney familiar with maritime laws to better understand your rights.