United States Exclusive Economic Zone

United States Exclusive Economic Zone
Name	United States Exclusive Economic Zone
Type	Exclusive economic zone
Area km2	11,351,000
Established	1983–1994
Jurisdiction	United States

Contents

United States Exclusive Economic Zone is the maritime zone extending up to 200 nautical miles from the baseline of the United States coasts and possessions, forming one of the world's largest maritime jurisdictions. The zone interfaces with territorial waters around the Alaska, Hawaii, Guam, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa coasts and overlaps with zones of neighboring states such as Canada, Mexico, Russia, and Cuba. Management involves multiple national agencies including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the United States Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior, and the United States Coast Guard.

Geography and extent

The zone covers roughly 11.35 million square kilometers around the United States mainland and insular areas including Pacific Ocean possessions like Guam and Hawaii and Atlantic possessions like Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands. It borders the maritime jurisdictions of Canada in the Gulf of Maine and Bering Sea regions, Mexico in the Gulf of Mexico and eastern Pacific approaches, and shares delimitation considerations with Russia across the Bering Strait and with Cuba in the Straits of Florida. Major geographic features within the zone include the Chesapeake Bay, the Gulf of Mexico, the Aleutian Islands, the Continental Shelf of the United States, and offshore features such as the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain and the Puerto Rico Trench.

United States maritime rights derive from domestic law and adherence to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea principles, applied through statutes like the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and executive proclamations under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. Management responsibilities are distributed among federal entities such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and interact with state authorities from entities like the State of Alaska and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Disputes and delimitation have invoked agreements and negotiations with Canada (including issues near the Gulf of Maine), and boundary rulings have referenced decisions under bodies like the International Court of Justice and principles articulated by the United Nations.

The zone supports extensive fisheries managed under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act with major stocks including Atlantic cod, Alaskan pollock, Pacific salmon, and Bluefin tuna, and regional councils such as the North Pacific Fishery Management Council and the New England Fishery Management Council. Hydrocarbon exploration and production occur on the Outer Continental Shelf of the United States in basins like the Gulf of Mexico basin and the Alaska North Slope margin, regulated by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and implicated in incidents such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Renewable energy initiatives include offshore wind projects involving firms and programs linked to the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the Department of Energy in regions like the Atlantic Coast and off California. Shipping lanes across the zone connect ports such as Port of Los Angeles, Port of New York and New Jersey, and Port of New Orleans, underpinning trade with partners like China, European Union, and Japan.

Environmental protection in the zone involves statutory frameworks like the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Endangered Species Act, and programs administered by the National Marine Fisheries Service and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, addressing species such as the North Atlantic right whale, the Humpback whale, and the Steller sea lion. Marine protected areas and national marine sanctuaries—including the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary, and the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary—preserve habitats and cultural resources. Responses to pollution and habitat degradation have involved federal actions after events like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and collaborations with organizations such as the Environmental Protection Agency, The Nature Conservancy, and regional research institutions like the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Enforcement of laws in the zone is led by the United States Coast Guard supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's enforcement arms and interagency cooperation with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security for counter-illicit trafficking. Surveillance and domain awareness use platforms and programs including patrol cutters like the Legend-class cutter, aircraft such as the HC-130 Hercules, satellite assets including those operated by the National Reconnaissance Office, and initiatives like the Integrated Ocean Observing System and the Automatic Identification System. Security considerations also involve freedom of navigation and interactions with navies such as the United States Navy, the Royal Canadian Navy, and the Russian Navy in contested or proximate waters.

Policy evolution began with national proclamations in the late 20th century and domestic implementation through laws like the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act and actions under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act; the concept was informed by international debates at the United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. Major events shaping policy include the extension of jurisdiction in the 1980s, energy-driven leasing in the Gulf of Mexico and Cook Inlet, environmental turning points such as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and more recent shifts toward offshore renewable energy under administrations involving the Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy. Ongoing policy discussions engage stakeholders ranging from coastal states like the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the State of Alaska to indigenous groups such as the Aleut and organizations including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Category:Maritime zones of the United States