The Real Map of Ireland

The currently designated Irish Continental Shelf, represented by the red line on the map. shows Ireland's current territorial waters which extends out across the North Atlantic Ocean and includes parts of the Irish and Celtic Seas. This area also includes one of the largest marine Exclusive Economic Zones in the European Union.

The Continental Shelf of a coastal State comprises the seabed and subsoil of submarine areas that extend to 200 nautical miles from its territorial sea baselines or further if the natural prolongation of its land mass is beyond this. The coastal State exercises over the continental shelf sovereign rights for the purpose of exploring it and exploiting its natural resources. Where a margin extends beyond 200 nautical miles, a coastal state may extend its continental shelf limit, subject to the criteria set out in Article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.