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3. What is the law of the sea?

**What is the law of the sea?**  The law of the sea is **a body of customs, treaties, and international agreements** by which governments maintain order, productivity, and peaceful relations on the sea. A NOAA Nautical Chart*NOAA's nautical charts provide the  baseline that marks the inner limit of the territorial sea and the outer limit of internal waters. This determines where U.S. territorial waters begin for purposes of international law.* Notable  in the development of the law of the sea are a number of international  conventions signed in the latter half of the 20th century. The United Nations (UN)  held its first Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS I) in 1956, which  resulted in a 1958 Convention. The final conference, held in Montego Bay,  Jamaica, in 1982, resulted in the 1982 Law of the Sea Convention (LOSC). The  LOSC came into force in 1994 upon receiving the necessary number of UN signatories. While the United States ratified the 1958  Convention, as of late 2013, it had not become a party to the 1982 Convention. The  United States recognizes that the 1982 Convention reflects customary  international law and complies with its provisions. NOAA's Role NOAA  is responsible for depicting on its nautical charts the limits of the 12  nautical mile Territorial Sea, 24 nautical mile Contiguous Zone, and 200  nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Each of these maritime zones is  projected from what is called a “normal baseline,” which is derived from NOAA  nautical charts. A “normal baseline” is defined under the Law of the Sea as the  low-water line along the coast as marked on officially recognized, large-scale  charts or the lowest charted datum, which is mean lower low water (MLLW) in the  United States. The method of arriving at this baseline is described in the 1958  Convention and in the 1982 Convention. The U.S. normal baselines are ambulatory  and subject to changes such as accretion (addition of land) and erosion. Unless  the seaward boundary or zone is fixed, it will be subject to corresponding  change. The  location of maritime zones and boundaries can have potentially far-reaching  effects. As a result, NOAA works with other federal agencies, particularly the  U.S. Department of State, to periodically update U.S. maritime zones and  boundaries as depicted on NOAA navigational charts.
  More **Information** NOAA Office of General Counsel U.S. Maritime Limits and Boundaries U.S. Department  of State: Law of Sea Convention What is the EEZ?   Get **Social** Social
  **Last updated:** 01/18/24 **Author:** NOAA How to cite this article Contact Us


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