Tiefwasserreede
Tiefwasserreede
The Tiefwasserreede (
12 mile limit that usually defines territorial waters, but remains German territory under Article 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea which makes an exception for roadsteads. It legally forms part of the state of Lower Saxony and is completely surrounded by the German exclusive economic zone.[1]
Definition
Germany initially announced plans to declare the Tiefwasserreede as sovereign territory in 1983. Motivated by the 1978
German Navy, who feared a reprisal from East Germany, which could significantly reduce access to the Baltic Sea by extending its own territorial waters.[2]
Before the UN Convention could come into force, the Tiefwasserreede and other waters around Heligoland were declared as German territorial waters - the "Helgoland-Box" - in 1985, while the 3-mile rule still ruled the rest of the coastline.[1] The 12 mile rule was not implemented until 1994. Tiefwasserreede was then defined in law as the patch of sea bounded by the following points:[3]
- 54°08′11″N 7°24′36″E / 54.13639°N 7.41000°E
- 54°08′19″N 7°26′59″E / 54.13861°N 7.44972°E
- 54°01′39″N 7°33′04″E / 54.02750°N 7.55111°E
- 54°00′27″N 7°24′36″E / 54.00750°N 7.41000°E
Challenges
The stretch of water at the mouths of the rivers
Offshore wind farms cannot be built within two nautical miles of the Tiefwasserreede.[6]
As well as a mooring for ships, the Tiefwasserreede is also used as a dumping ground for bay mud from dredging of the Elbe at Hamburg.[7]
References
- ^ a b Buchholz, Hanns. "Deutschlands Meereszonen in Nordsee und Ostsee". Nationalatlas Bundesrepublik Deutschland – Deutschland in der Welt (PDF) (in German). Vol. 11. p. 44-45.
- ^ "Mehr Meer". Der Spiegel. 18 December 1983. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
- ^ "Bekanntmachung der Proklamation der Bundesregierung über die Ausweitung des deutschen Küstenmeeres" (in German). German Ministry of Justice. 11 November 1994. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
- ^ "Der Superstau". Der Spiegel. 20 May 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
- ^ "Offshore-Netzentwicklungsplan 2013" (PDF). Bundesnetzagentur. p. 75. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
- ^ "Raumordungskonzept für das niedersächsische Küstenmeer" (PDF). Niedersächsisches Ministerium für den ländlichen Raum, Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Verbraucherschutz. p. 24. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
- ^ "Hamburgs Hafenschlick: Bund soll Deponie in Nordsee prüfen". NDR. 14 April 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2022.