United Nations Commision on the Limits of the Continental Shelf

The United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf is designed to facilitate the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. In accordance with UNCLOS, coastal states with a continental shelf extending more than two hundred nautical miles make submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf delineating their claims under Article 76 of UNCLOS and the Statement of Understanding adopted on August 29, 1980 by the third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea. The commission provides scientific and technical advice to coastal states where needed and finally makes recommendations to coastal states on matters related to the establishment of the limit of their continental shelf. According to the Purpose of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf, “its recommendations and actions shall not prejudice matters relating to the delimitation of boundaries between States with opposite or adjacent coasts."  This means that the Commission traditionally recommends bilateral or multilateral negotiations in the event of an overlapping boundary claim. For example, this was the recommendation of the Commission in areas of the Barents sea over which both Norway and Russia have made claims.

The Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf holds private sessions twice annually, once in the spring and once in the fall, at the United Nations headquarters in New York. Twenty-one experts in geology, geophysics or hydrology are elected by their states to sit on the Commission and the representation of states is designed to ensure equitable geographic representation with not less than three members elected from each geographical region. Election is by two-thirds majority with a quorum of two-thirds of the states party to the convention necessary in order to hold an election, which is convened at United Nations Headquarters by the Secretary-General. Commission members serve a term of five years and are eligible for reelection.

States have until ten years from the date when the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea enters into force within their state to make submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf. The Commission considers each submission separately in seven-member sub-commissions. No expert who has provided scientific or technical advice to the state about the submission or any national of the submitting state is permitted to be part of the subcommission considering a submission and states are required to list those Commission members who have provided the state advice in making its submission. After reviewing the submission, the sub-commission makes recommendations to the entire Commission. If these recommendations are approved by at least a two-thirds majority of the entire Commission, the recommendations of the Commission will be submitted in writing to both the submitting state and to the United Nations Secretary-General.

The work of the Commission is particularly important in the Arctic, where major shipping routes cross national boundaries and the extended continental shelf represents a wealth of mineral and hydrocarbon resources. In large part, the Commission's work is important because of the different authorities legally accorded to states within and beyond their two hundred nautical mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Within the EEZ, coastal states may explore and exploit, conserve and manage both living and non-living natural resources. Furthermore, they can utilize the region for other economic purposes, such as the generation of power from the wind and currents.  Within this zone, they likewise may carry our marine scientific research and preserve and protect the marine environment. However, outside of the two hundred nautical mile EEZ states do not possess these sovereign rights. With billions of barrels of natural gas and oil alone submerged on the Arctic seabed, the ruling of the Commission are therefore of significant economic and political importance.