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). The outer limit of each of these zones is measured from the U.S. normal baseline, which coincides with the low water line depicted on NOAA charts and includes closing lines across the entrances of legal bays and rivers, consistent with international law. The U.S. baseline and associated maritime limits are reviewed and approved through the interagency U.S. Baseline Committee, which is chaired by the U.S. Department of State. The Committee serves the function of gaining interagency consensus on the proper location of the baseline using the provisions of the 1958 Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, to ensure that the seaward extent of U.S. maritime zones do not exceed the breadth that is permitted by international law. In 2002 and in response to mounting requests for digital maritime zones, NOAA launched a project to re-evaluate the U.S. baseline in partnership with other federal agencies via the U.S. Baseline Committee. The focus of the baseline evaluation was NOAA's largest scale, most recent edition nautical charts as well as supplemental source materials for verification of certain charted features. This dataset is a result of the 2002-present initiative and reflects a multi-year iterative project whereby the baseline and associated maritime limits were re-evaluated on a state or regional basis. In addition to the U.S. maritime limits, the U.S. maritime boundaries with opposite or adjacent countries as well as the US/Canada International Boundary (on land and through the Great Lakes) are also included in this dataset.

The maritime limits and boundaries of the U.S., found in the A-16 National Geospatial Data Asset Portfolio, is recognized as the low-water line along the coast measured from the U.S. baseline. This is marked on official U.S. nautical charts in accordance with the articles of the Law of the Sea. The baseline and related maritime limits are reviewed and approved by the inter-agency U.S. Baseline Committee.The primary purpose of this data is to update the official depiction of these maritime limits and boundaries on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's nautical charts. The Office of Coast Survey depicts on its nautical charts the territorial sea (12 nautical miles), contiguous zone (24 nautical miles), and Exclusive Economic Zone (200 nautical miles, plus maritime boundaries with adjacent/opposite countries). U.S. maritime limits are ambulatory and are subject to revision based on accretion or erosion of the charted low-water line. For more information about U.S. maritime limits and boundaries and to download data, see U.S. Maritime Limits & Boundaries. For the full Federal Geographic Data Committee metadata record, see Maritime Limits and Boundaries of United States of America.Thumbnail source image courtesy of: David Restivo

The US territorial sea is a maritime zone, over which the United States exercises sovereignty. Each coastal State claims a territorial sea that extends seaward up to 12 nautical miles from its coastal baseline. As defined by maritime law, the coastal State exercises sovereignty over its territorial sea, the air space above it, and the seabed and subsoil beneath it. The U.S. territorial sea extends 12 nautical miles from the coastal baseline. The zone is usually used in concert with several other Limits and Boundary Lines for Maritime purposes.Maritime limits for the United States are measured from the US baseline, which is recognized as the low-water line along the coast as marked on NOAA's nautical charts. The baseline and related maritime limits are reviewed and approved by the interagency US Baseline Committee. The Office of Coast Survey depicts on its nautical charts the territorial sea (12nm), contiguous zone (24nm), and exclusive economic zone (200nm, plus maritime boundaries with adjacent/opposite countries. US maritime limits are ambulatory and subject to revision based on accretion or erosion of the charted low water line. Dataset SummaryThis map service contains data from NOAA and BOEM sources that address USA Regional coastal areas and are designed to be used together within an ArcGIS.com web map. These include: World Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) from NOAA Office of Coast SurveyContiguous Zone (CZ) from NOAA Office of Coast SurveyTerritorial Sea (TS) Boundary from NOAA Office of Coast SurveyRevenue Sharing Boundary [Section 8(g) of OCSLA Zone Boundary] from Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)Submerged Land Act Boundaries (SLA) aka State Seaward Boundary (SSB)State Administrative Boundary from Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)Continental Shelf Boundary (CSB) from Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM)Regional Maritime Planning Area Boundaries from NOAA Office of Coast SurveyInternational Provisional Maritime Boundary from NOAA (International Boundary Commission)The data for this layer were obtained from MarineCadastre.gov and is updated regularly.More information about U.S. Maritime Limits and BoundariesLink to source metadataWhat can you do with this layer?The features in this layer are used for areas and limits of coastal planning areas, or offshore planning areas, applied within ArcGIS Desktop and ArcGIS Online. A depiction of the territorial sea boundaries helps disputing parties reach an agreement as in the case of one state's boundary overlapping with another state's territorial sea, in which case the border is taken as the median point between the states' baselines, unless the states in question agree otherwise. A state can also choose to claim a smaller territorial sea.Conflicts still occur whenever a coastal nation claims an entire gulf as its territorial waters while other nations only recognize the more restrictive definitions of the UN convention. Two recent conflicts occurred in the Gulf of Sidra where Libya has claimed the entire gulf as its territorial waters and the US has twice enforced freedom of navigation rights, in the 1981 and 1989 Gulf of Sidra incidents.This layer is a feature service, which means it can be used for visualization and analysis throughout the ArcGIS Platform. This layer is not editable.

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). The outer limit of each of these zones is measured from the U.S. normal baseline, which coincides with the low water line depicted on NOAA charts and includes closing lines across the entrances of legal bays and rivers, consistent with international law. The U.S. baseline and associated maritime limits are reviewed and approved through the interagency U.S. Baseline Committee, which is chaired by the U.S. Department of State. The Committee serves the function of gaining interagency consensus on the proper location of the baseline using the provisions of the 1958 Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, to ensure that the seaward extent of U.S. maritime zones do not exceed the breadth that is permitted by international law. In 2002 and in response to mounting requests for digital maritime zones, NOAA launched a project to re-evaluate the U.S. baseline in partnership with other federal agencies via the U.S. Baseline Committee. The focus of the baseline evaluation was NOAA's largest scale, most recent edition nautical charts as well as supplemental source materials for verification of certain charted features. This dataset is a result of the 2002-present initiative and reflects a multi-year iterative project whereby the baseline and associated maritime limits were re-evaluated on a state or regional basis. In addition to the U.S. maritime limits, the U.S. maritime boundaries with opposite or adjacent countries as well as the US/Canada International Boundary (on land and through the Great Lakes) are also included in this dataset.

Maritime Limits and Boundaries of United States of AmericaNOAA 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). The outer limit of each of these zones is measured from the U.S. normal baseline, which coincides with the low water line depicted on NOAA charts and includes closing lines across the entrances of legal bays and rivers, consistent with international law. The U.S. baseline and associated maritime limits are reviewed and approved through the interagency U.S. Baseline Committee, which is chaired by the U.S. Department of State. The Committee serves the function of gaining interagency consensus on the proper location of the baseline using the provisions of the 1958 Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, to ensure that the seaward extent of U.S. maritime zones do not exceed the breadth that is permitted by international law. In 2002 and in response to mounting requests for digital maritime zones, NOAA launched a project to re-evaluate the U.S. baseline in partnership with other federal agencies via the U.S. Baseline Committee. The focus of the baseline evaluation was NOAA's largest scale, most recent edition nautical charts as well as supplemental source materials for verification of certain charted features. This dataset is a result of the 2002-present initiative and reflects a multi-year iterative project whereby the baseline and associated maritime limits were re-evaluated on a state or regional basis. In addition to the U.S. maritime limits, the U.S. maritime boundaries with opposite or adjacent countries as well as the US/Canada International Boundary (on land and through the Great Lakes) are also included in this dataset.

This GIS data set represents various maritime limits of the United States, in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic Oceans. NOAA's Office of Coast Survey (OCS) is responsible for generating the 3 Nautical Mile Line, Territorial Sea, Contiguous Zone, and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Traditionally, these maritime limits have been generated by hand from the low water line depicted on paper, U.S. nautical charts. Upon final approval by the U.S. Baseline Committee, these legally-binding maritime limits are applied to the next edition of nautical charts produced by the Marine Chart Division of OCS.FWRI staff downloaded the available limits from NOAA's Web site: http://chartmaker.ncd.noaa.gov/csdl/mbound.htm . For other boundaries that were not available on NOAA's site, (Florida 9 mile Natural Resources line, Florida-Alabama State line, and Louisiana Inshore Territorial Sea boundary), FWRI staff heads up digitized these from Nautical Charts, DRG's, or obtained from other sources.

This is a global dataset containing maritime boundaries derived fromt the VLIZ Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase. The concept of maritime boundaries is a relative new concept. Coastal states now want to delimit an area in the ocean where they have exclusive rights over the mineral and biological resources. The basis for the calculation of maritime boundaries is the declaration of a baseline. The conditions under which a state may establish such baseline are described in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). A baseline of a country can be the low water line, a straight baseline (a line that encloses bays, estuaries, inland waters,...) or a combination of the two. The zone extending 12 Nautical Miles from the baseline is the Territorial Sea and the zone extending 24 Nautical Miles is the Contiguous Zone of a country. The legal Exclusive Economic Zone is the zone extending 200 Nautical Miles from the baseline. When the space between two countries is less than 400 Nautical Miles, the boundary should be the Median Line or should be described in a multilateral treaty. Multilateral treaties and documents describing the baselines of countries can be found on the website of the United Nations (http://www.un.org/Depts/los/LEGISLATIONANDTREATIES/regionslist.htm). Those documents were a major source for the development of the database.

These data show the geographic representation of Federal and State Waters for the purpose of display in the MarineCadastre.gov OceanReports application. The boundary between state and federal waters was determined by consulting The Submerged Lands Act (43 U.S.C. §§ 1301 et seq.), 48 U.S.C. §§ 1705 and The Abandoned Shipwreck Act (43 U.S.C. §§ 2101). Some boundary delineations based on the SLA were approximated in this data set, including areas in Hawaii, Alaska, and Washington State. Although state boarders do not extend over water, it was necessary to approximate these borders to produce this data set. The boundaries depicted in this data set are for visual purposes only. The placement of these boundaries was extrapolated from the Federal Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Administrative Boundaries as described here http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/05-24659.pdf. The delineation between waters under US sovereign territory jurisdiction and that of federal governance is also approximate. Although based upon legislation, these data do not represent legal boundaries, especially in the case of Navassa Island, The Northern Mariana Islands, Baker Island, Howland Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Palmyra Atoll, Wake Islands and Jarvis Island.The seaward limit of this data set is the boundary of the 200nm US Exclusive Economic Zone. The EEZ is measured from the US baseline, recognized as the low-water line along the coast as marked on NOAA's nautical charts in accordance with articles of the Laws of the Sea. These limits are ambulatory and subject to revision based on changes in coastline geometry. This dataset was produced based on an update to the Maritime Limits published in September, 2013. To view the most up-to-date Maritime Limits, please see http://www.nauticalcharts.noaa.gov/csdl/mbound.htm. Navassa Island does not have an EEZ around it, so the seaward extent of the federal waters surrounding it were based on the 12 mile offshore boundary of the USFWS National Wildlife Refuge established on the island. All data is displayed in WGS_1984_World_Mercator. Area calculations for all states except Alaska were completed in the same projection. Area calculations for Alaska were completed in Alaska Albers Equal Area Conic.

An exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is a sea zone prescribed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea over which a sovereign state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources, including energy production from water and wind. This maritime boundary is designed to be used with other marine boundaries in order to help determine areas of trade, commerce and transportation. The 200 NM zone is measured, country-by-country, from another maritime boundary, the baseline (usually but not in all cases the mean low-water mark, used is not the same thing as the coast line. For each country, obtain the official list of the baseline points from the United Nations under Maritime Space.The exclusive economic zone stretches much further into sea than the territorial waters, which end at 12 NM (22 km) from the coastal baseline (if following the rules set out in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea). Thus, the EEZ includes the contiguous zone. States also have rights to the seabed of what is called the continental shelf up to 350 NM (648 km) from the coastal baseline, beyond the EEZ, but such areas are not part of their EEZ. The legal definition of the continental shelf does not directly correspond to the geological meaning of the term, as it also includes the continental rise and slope, and the entire seabed within the EEZ. The chart below diagrams the overlapping jurisdictions which are part of the EEZ. When the (EEZ) boundary is between countries which are separated by less than 200NM is settled by international tribunals at any arbitrary line. Many countries are still in the process of extending their EEZs beyond 200NM using criteria defined in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Dataset Summary The data for this layer were obtained from https://www.marineregions.org/published here. Link to source metadata.Preferred Citation: Flanders Marine Institute (2023). Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase: Maritime Boundaries and Exclusive Economic Zones (200NM), version 12. Available online at https://www.marineregions.org/. https://doi.org/10.14284/632This layer is a feature service, which means it can be used for visualization and analysis throughout the ArcGIS Platform. This layer is not editable.

The primary purpose of this dataset is to update the official depiction of these maritime zones and maritime boundaries on NOAA's nautical charts. The limits of these zones are subject to modification, as represented on future charts. The limits shown on the most recent chart edition take precedence. 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). The outer limit of each of these zones is measured from the U.S. normal baseline, which coincides with the low water line depicted on NOAA charts and includes closing lines across the entrances of legal bays and rivers, consistent with international law. The U.S. baseline and associated maritime limits are reviewed and approved through the interagency U.S. Baseline Committee, which is chaired by the U.S. Department of State. The Committee serves the function of gaining interagency consensus on the proper location of the baseline using the provisions of the 1958 Convention on the Territorial Sea and the Contiguous Zone, to ensure that the seaward extent of U.S. maritime zones do not exceed the breadth that is permitted by international law. In 2002 and in response to mounting requests for digital maritime zones, NOAA launched a project to re-evaluate the U.S. baseline in partnership with other federal agencies via the U.S. Baseline Committee. The focus of the baseline evaluation was NOAA's largest scale, most recent edition nautical charts as well as supplemental source materials for verification of certain charted features. This dataset is a result of the 2002-present initiative and reflects a multi-year iterative project whereby the baseline and associated maritime limits were re-evaluated on a state or regional basis. In addition to the U.S. maritime limits, the U.S. maritime boundaries with opposite or adjacent countries as well as the US/Canada International Boundary (on land and through the Great Lakes) are also included in this dataset.View Dataset on the Gateway

The product “Maritime limits and boundaries” (French: “Délimitations maritimes”) gathers all the elements used for the definition of the maritime spaces under the French sovereignty or jurisdiction through the world. Those spaces are defined by the Ordonnance n° 2016-1687 of 8 December 2016 relating to maritime spaces under sovereignty or jurisdiction of the French Republic. This ordonnance is the transcription in the French legislation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) which was signed in Montego Bay (Jamaica) on 10 December 1982 end ratified by France on 11 April 1996. These elements of maritime limits and boundaries come from the limits computed by Shom on the basis of International Law, from the international agreements relating to maritime boundary and the technical conventions ratified between France and other States, from the decisions of international juridical bodies, from the recommendations of the Commission of the Limits of the Continental Shelf (UNO) or from unilateral claims from France in the absence of agreement. The elements are divided into seven themes: 1- Straight baselines 2- Outer limits of the territorial sea (12 nautical miles) 3- Outer limits of the contiguous zone (24 nautical miles) 4- Outer limits of the exclusive economic zone (200 nautical miles) 5- Maritime boundaries established by a bilateral agreement or decided by an international juridical body 6- Maritime boundaries unilaterally claimed by France in the absence of agreement 7- Outer limit of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles December 2022 version

Treaty Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Kiribati on the Delimitation of Maritime Boundaries, signed at Majuro on September 6, 2013, (hereinafter, the ``Kiribati Maritime Boundary Treaty'' ) is to establish the United States maritime boundary in the South Pacific Ocean with the neighbouring country of the Republic of Kiribati. The Treaty establishes three maritime boundaries totalling approximately 1,260 nautical miles in length between Kiribati and the United States islands of Palmyra Atoll, Kingman Reef, Jarvis Island, and Baker Island.

The treaty between Marshall Islands and USA (Wake Island) is still not settled. This layer is extracted from the Global Marine Regions Database (marineregions.org)

Marine jurisdictions define the U.S. boundaries and limits for sovereignty, exclusive rights, and control over maritime areas off its coast. These limits are measured from the U.S. baseline, defined as the low-water line along the coast and marked on NOAA's nautical charts, in accordance with the Law of the Sea. The U.S. Baseline Committee reviews and approves the baseline and related maritime limits. NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey updates these limits and boundaries on nautical charts, including the territorial sea (12 nautical miles), contiguous zone (24 nautical miles), and exclusive economic zone (200 nautical miles), along with maritime boundaries with neighboring countries. U.S. maritime limits are subject to changes due to natural processes such as accretion or erosion.State Seaward Boundary: Defined by the Submerged Lands Act of 1953, this boundary extends 3 nautical miles (nmi) from the baseline, except for Texas, the Gulf coast of Florida, and Puerto Rico, where it extends 9 nmi. This boundary marks the extent of state jurisdiction.Revenue Sharing Boundary: Established by Section 8(g) of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, this boundary extends 3 nmi beyond the State Seaward Boundary. Revenues from resources such as oil and gas in this area are shared between the federal government and the coastal state.Territorial Sea: Extended to 12 nmi from the U.S. baseline by Presidential Proclamation 5928 in 1988, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The U.S. exercises full sovereignty over this area, including the airspace above and the subsoil below.Contiguous Zone: Extending from 12 to 24 nmi from the U.S. baseline, this zone allows the U.S. to enforce laws related to customs, fiscal matters, immigration, and sanitation to prevent violations within its territory or territorial sea, in line with international law.Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ): Extending from 3 to 200 miles offshore (5 to 322 km), or 9 to 200 miles (14.5 to 322 km) offshore in western Florida and Texas, the EEZ grants the U.S. jurisdiction over economic activities and resource management, including the exploration, exploitation, conservation, and management of natural resources, in accordance with international law.Data and MetadataUS Marine LimitsUS Revenue SharingUS State SeawardOriginal Plate from 1985 Atlas: Political Boundaries and Maritime Zones (.pdf)This is a component of the Gulf Data Atlas (V1.0) for the Jurisdictions topic area.

The three nautical mile (3 nmi) limit refers to a traditional and now largely obsolete maritime boundary that defined a country's territorial waters, for the purposes of trade regulation and exclusivity, as extending as far as the reach of cannons fired from land. In its place, the Territorial Sea boundary at 12 nmi was established as the international norm by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The MPA Inventory is a comprehensive catalog that provides detailed information for existing marine protected areas in the United States. The inventory provides geospatial boundary information (in polygon format) and classification attributes that seek to define the conservation objectives, protection level, governance and related management criteria for all sites in the database. The comprehensive inventory of federal, state and territorial MPA sites provides governments and stakeholders with access to information to make better decisions about the current and future use of place-based conservation. The information also will be used to inform the development of the national system of marine protected areas as required by Executive Order 13158.

The National Estuarine Research Reserve System is a network of 29 estuarine areas—places where freshwater from the land mixes with saltwater from the sea—established across the nation for long-term research, education, and coastal stewardship.

An exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is a sea zone prescribed by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea over which a sovereign state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources, including energy production from water and wind. The 200 NM zone is measured, country-by-country, from another maritime boundary, the baseline (usually but not in all cases the mean low-water mark, used is not the same thing as the coast line. For each country, the official list of the baseline points is obtained from the United Nations Law of the Sea Maritime Space (http://www.un.org/depts/los/LEGISLATIONANDTREATIES/regionslist.htm).

The data for this layer were obtained from http://www.marineregions.org/eezmethodology.php. The Preferred Citation for this data is Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) (2014), Maritime Boundaries Geodatabase, version 8 in conjunction with NOAA. The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) limits and boundaries were created for NOAA's purposes only to update the charted maritime limits and maritime boundaries on NOAA charts and for official depiction, please see NOAA's paper or raster nautical charts (Sourced from NOAA_Version 4.1, 9/10/2013). NOAA provides shapefiles of the Exclusive Economic Zones for different regions of the United States and its overseas territories. In a second phase the database of negotiated treaties from the United Nations Law of the Sea was consulted and imported into a GIS. The geographic coordinates from the documents were converted to decimal degrees and imported into a database. After importing them in ArcGIS, the points were connected by a line. The remaining boundaries were calculated in a GIS in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea: a 200 Nautical Mile buffer was drawn from the baseline or a median line between 2 countries was calculated.

The Territorial Sea of the United States of America By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation of 27 December 1988 states the extension of the territorial sea of the United States of America, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory or possession over which the United States exercises sovereignty.

The territorial sea of the United States henceforth extends to 12 nautical miles from the baselines of the United States determined in accordance with international law. In accordance with international law, as reflected in the applicable provisions of the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea, within the territorial sea of the United States, the ships of all countries enjoy the right of innocent passage and the ships and aircraft of all countries enjoy the right of transit passage through international straits. Nothing in this Proclamation: (a) extends or otherwise alters existing federal or State law or any jurisdiction, rights, legal interests, or obligations derived therefrom, or (b) impairs the determination, in accordance with international law, of any maritime boundary of the United States with a foreign jurisdiction.

https://www.un.org/depts/los/LEGISLATIONANDTREATIES/PDFFILES/USA_1988_Proclamation.pdf

Territorial waters or a territorial sea, as defined by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,[1] is a belt of coastal waters extending at most 12 nautical miles (22.2 km; 13.8 mi) from the baseline (usually the mean low-water mark) of a coastal state. The territorial sea is regarded as the sovereign territory of the state, although foreign ships (civilian) are allowed innocent passage through it, or transit passage for straits; this sovereignty also extends to the airspace over and seabed below. Adjustment of these boundaries is called, in international law, maritime delimitation. The term "territorial waters" is also sometimes used informally to refer to any area of water over which a state has jurisdiction, including internal waters, the contiguous zone, the exclusive economic zone and potentially the continental shelf.