Legal status of offshore (deep-water) oil rigs: coastal state jurisdiction and countering oil spills threats

Given that UNCLOS III provides for a coastal states' jurisdiction over the establishment and use of installations, artificial islands, and structures in the EEZ, it would be in the sync of things to consider deep-water oil rigs as seabed installations legally. Then, the coastal states would have plenary jurisdiction, during both drilling and production over deep-water oil rigs as well. This would allow for a routine examination, inspection, and implementation of the various precautionary measures to prevent accidents and stymie acts of terrorism. As an addendum, the treatment of deepwater mobile oil rigs as seabed installations would be in keeping with the overall purpose of establishing the continental shelf and the EEZ maritime zones as it would provide coastal states with plenary jurisdiction. It would recognize their sovereign rights, with regard to, the exploitation, and exploration of natural resources. A sensible and very logical (Mossop, 2018) solution is required as the coastal states would have to bear the most significant risk in the event of an accident or an act of maritime terrorism being eventuated on. As suggested, should they be considered as seabed installations, they will possess total jurisdiction. As a corollary, they would have the control (preventive measures included) and responsibility for dealing with any eventuality, should it arise. Hence, classifying deep water mobile oil rigs as seabed installations during both the drilling and production phases would remove the unnecessary uncertainties that currently exist regarding the status and definitional perspective of deep-water mobile oil rigs operating in the EEZ of a coastal nation. Given that the state (Currue, 2017, p. 32) of the environment has worsened progressively in a plethora of crucial areas, the sooner the uncertainties are tackled, the better it would be.

References

1. Anderson, E.E., & Talley, W.K. (1995). The Oil Spill Size of Tanker & Barge Accidents: Determinants and Policy Implications. Land Economics, 71, 216-228.

2. Artificial intelligence improves real-time drilling data analysis (2019, January 2). Offshore. https://www.offshore-mag.com/drilling-completion/ article/16764029/artificial-intelligence-improves-realtime-drilling-data- analysis

3. Bemaerts, A. (1988). Bernaerts ' Guide to the Law of Sea: The 1982 United Nations Convention. Fairplay Publications.

4. BP Oil Rig Registration Raised in Congress Over Safety Concerns (2010, May 30). The Guardian. http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/may/30/ oil-spill-deepwater-horizon-marshall-islands

5. Bustillo, M., & Smith, R. (2010, May 20). Spotlight Now on Coast Guard. Wall Street Journal.

6. Churchill, R.R., & Lowe, A.V (1988). The Law of the Sea. (2^nd ed.). Manchester University Press.

7. Clark, A. (2010, May 30). BP Oil Rig Registration Raised in Congress Over Security Concerns. Guardian.co.uk. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/ may/30/oil-spill-deepwater-horizon-marshall-islands

8. Currue, D. (2017). The Oceans: The Law of the Sea Convention as a form of global governance. Policy Quarterly, 13, 1, 32-36.

9. Di Natale, M. (2010, July 21). The Economic Impact of the Gulf Oil Spill. Moody 's Analytics Economic View. https://www.economy.com/economicview/ analysis/191641/The-Economic-Impact-of-the-Gulf-Oil-Spill

10. Esmaeili, H. (1997). The Legal Status of Offshore Oil Rigs in International Law. Ravue Hellenique Droit International, 50, 107-138.

11. Esmaeili, H. (1999). The Protection of Offshore Oil Rigs in International Law (Part I). Australian Mining and Petroleum Law Journal, 18, 1, 241-252.

12. Esmaeili, H. (2000). The Protection of Offshore Oil Rigs in International Law (Part II). Australian Mining and Petroleum Law Journal, 19, 1, 35-43.

13. Esmaeili, H. (2001). The Legal Regime of Offshore Oil Rigs in International Law. Chapter 4. Routledge. DOI: 10.4324/9781315238722.

14. Esmaeili, H. (2002). The Conflict between the Establishment and Operations of Offshore Installations, Navigations and Other Uses of the Sea in International Law: part 2. International Energy Law and Taxation Review, 12, 293-300.

15. Fitzgerald, S., Holst-Jensen, A., Steendam, S., & Wallinderet A.A. (2014). International Cooperation in Combatting Threats to Maritime Security: Global Maritime Security and International Law. Interstate - Journal of International Affairs, 2013/2014, 1. http://www.inquiriesjournal.com/a?id=1085

16. Gjerde, K.M. et al. (2008). Regulatory and Governance Gaps in the International Regime for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biodiversity in Areas beyond National Jurisdiction. IUCN.

17. Hagerty, C.L., & Ramseur, J.L. (2010). Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Selected issues for Congress. CRS Report No. R41262, Congressional Research Service.

18. Kaye, S. (2007). International measures to protect oil platforms, pipelines, and submarine cables from attack. Tulane Maritime Law Journal, 31(2), 377-423.

19. Kraska, J., & Pedrozo, R. (2018). International Maritime Security Law. Brill Nijhoff.

20. Martin, P.H. (2011). The BP Spill and the meaning of “Gross Negligence or Willful Misconduct”. Louisiana Law Review, 71, 3, https://digitalcommons.law.lsu. edu/lalrev/vol71/iss3/5

21. Moore, N.J. (2010). NOAA Doubles Fishing Closure Area in Gulf: Wildlife, Food Effects Monitored. Env tRep., 41^st ed.

22. Mossop, J. (2018). Can We Make the Oceans Greener? The Successes and Failures of UNCLOS as an Environmental Treaty. 49(4) VUWLR 573, Victoria University of Wellington Legal Research Paper No. 48/2019. DOI: 10.2139/ ssrn.3395068

23. National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling (2011). Report to the President on Deep Water: The Gulf Oil Disaster and the future of Offshore Drilling. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/ GPO-OILCOMMISSION/pdf/GPO-OILCOMMISSION.pdf

24. O'Connell, D.P. (1982). The International Law of the Sea. Vol. I. The Clarendon Press.

25. Prows, P. (2007). Tough Love: The Dramatic Birth and Looming demise of UNCLOS Property Law (and What is to be Done About It). Texas International Law Journal, 42, 241-309.

26. Richards, R.K. (2011). Deepwater Mobile Oil Rigs in the Exclusive Economic Zone and the Uncertainty of Coastal State Jurisdiction. Journal of International Business and Law, 10, 2, art. 10. http://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/jibl/ vol10/iss2/10

27. Robertson, C., & Fountain, H. (2010, July 16). British Petroleum Caps Its Leaking Well, Stopping the Oil after 86 Days. New York Times.

28. Roeschke, J.E. (2009). Eco-Terrorism and Piracy on the High Seas: Japanese Whaling and the Rights of Private Groups to Enforce International Conservation Law in Neutral Waters. Villanova Environmental Law Journal, 20, 1, art. 6. https://digitalcommons.law.villanova.edu/cgi/viewcontent. cgi?article=1043&context=elj

29. Schoenbaum, TJ. (2004). Admiralty & Maritime Law. (4^th edition). Thomson/ West.

30. The 44th President of the United States. (2010, May 21). Executive Order on National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling (No. 13543).

31. Transocean Limited providedfor a Press release dated April, 21, 2010. Deepwater. com. https://cutt.ly/2RBxIkI

32. United Nations. (1982, December 10). Convention on the Law of the Sea. United Nations Treaty Collection. https://cutt.ly/GRBxYOy

Размещено на Allbest.ru