A series of datasets relating to the areas of offshore jurisdictional
zones is available from the World Resources Institute at
http://earthtrends.wri.org/searchable_db/. The data are derived from the
Global Maritime Boundaries Database (2000 edition). Due to the way the
datasets are organised, it's not easy to use them to generate the
'bottom line' figure that Clive is seeking but, with a little work, I'm
sure they could be used to shed some light on the question. If you do
wish to view them, be aware that some of the world totals given by WRI
are significantly larger than the sum of the areas of listed for
individual states; if anyone can explain these discrepancies, I'd be
grateful to hear from you.
I assume that all the areas in the WRI datasets are planimetric. I don't
know enough about geodesy to know the scale of the variations between
planimetric and geodetic areas are across the globe, but I imagine they
are likely to be considerable. Would one of the geodesists on the list
be able to comment on this point?
m a r t i n
==================================
Martin Pratt
Director of Research
International Boundaries Research Unit
Department of Geography
University of Durham
South Road
Durham DH1 3LE
United Kingdom
+44 (0)191 334 1964 (direct line)
+44 (0)191 334 1962 (fax)
[log in to unmask] (email)
http://www-ibru.dur.ac.uk (World Wide Web)
==================================
> -----Original Message-----
> From: International boundaries discussion list
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Clive Schofield
> Sent: 02 March 2004 06:24
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: A question of proportion
>
> Dear Colleagues,
>
> A question of maritime jurisdiction for you. I've often seen
> it written that the oceans cover 71-72% of the earth's
> surface. However, there seems to be less agreement as to the
> proportion of the oceans under some form of national
> jurisdiction (ranging from territorial sea out to extended
> continental shelf claims) with estimates ranging between 32%
> and a potential 47% (though the latter figure seems too
> high). Does anyone have a more definitive estimate as to what
> proportion of the world's oceans currently fall within
> national zones of jurisdiction and, further, what the figure
> would be were every state to claim the maximum zones
> permissible under the LOS Convention? (In writing the latter
> part of this question the word "Antarctica" looms large I suspect!).
>
> Many thanks,
>
> Clive
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