Key Definitions The”foreshore” means the bed and shore, below the line of high water of ordinary or medium tides, of the sea and of every tidal river and tidal estuary and of every channel, creek and bay of the sea or of any such river or estuary; The “tidal lands” means the bed and shore, below the line of high water of ordinary spring tides, […]
Overview The Maritime Area Planning Act 2021 puts in place a comprehensive and coherent planning system for the entire Maritime Area. The constituent elements of this system are: Forward Planning; Development Management; and Enforcement. The Act also intends to establish a new agency, Maritime Area Regulatory Authority (MARA) to undertake certain consenting and enforcement functions. The main features of the maritime planning system are set […]
Continental Shelf Originally, resources of the sea were conceived of in terms of fishing and aquaculture. In the last 100 years, exploration of the seabed and its resources has become possible and economically feasible. Correspondingly, international law and conventions have evolved, largely giving enhanced rights and powers to the coastal state. The 1958 CSC provides that the coastal state exercises over the continental shelf, sovereign […]
UNCLOS Historically there were high seas and territorial seas. States enjoyed certain rights in their territorial seas.0 The high seas were open to all. The Law of the Sea has developed considerably over the last 50 years. New areas and zones are recognised with reference to resources. The International Law Commission drafted the first Draft Articles on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS I) in […]
Continental Shelf Convention The Continental Shelf Ireland signed but has not ratified the Convention on the Continental Shelf 1958. Ireland ratified the Law of the Sea Convention in 1996. However, Ireland has thereby effectively adopted the convention. Under the CSC, the Continental Shelf extends to the seabed and subsoil of submarine areas adjacent to the coast outside the limit of the territorial sea to a […]
Terrotorial Sea Limits Initially, Irish fishing limits extended to the old Irish territorial sea limit, i.e. three nautical miles from the baselines. The Maritime Jurisdiction Act declares that the exclusive fishery limit of the State comprises all sea areas lying within the outer limit of the territorial seas. Legislation allowed the government by statutory instrument to extend the exclusive fisheries limit. The State is authorised […]