Exclusive economic zone

<p>An exclusive economic zone (EEZ), as prescribed by the 1982 <a href="/facts/United_Nations_Convention_on_the_Law_of_the_Sea/t2PtV3aq">United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea</a>, is an area of the sea in which a <a href="/facts/Sovereign_state/TrUb8sns">sovereign state</a> has exclusive rights regarding the exploration and use of marine <a href="/facts/Natural_resource/w9WXxMx3">resources</a>, including energy production from water and wind.
</p><p>It stretches from the outer limit of the territorial sea (22.224 kilometres or 12 <a href="/facts/Nautical_mile/V4yJzvKw">nautical miles</a> from the baseline) out 370.4 kilometres (or 200 nautical miles) from the coast of the state in question. It is also referred to as a maritime continental margin and, in colloquial usage, may include the <a href="/facts/Continental_shelf/dpgHAR4U">continental shelf</a>. The term does not include either the <a href="/facts/Territorial_waters/ss9s492R">territorial sea</a> or the continental shelf beyond the 200 nautical mile limit. The difference between the territorial sea and the exclusive economic zone is that the first confers full <a href="/facts/Sovereignty/QnYhTTem">sovereignty</a> over the waters, whereas the second is merely a "sovereign right" which refers to the coastal state's rights below the surface of the sea. The surface waters are <a href="/facts/International_waters/PUPq5zmR">international waters</a>.
</p>

Exclusive economic zone open-in-new

Exclusive economic zone