The Law of Shared Hydrocarbon Resources and the Question of Shared State Responsibility for Environmental Harm Arising from Their Cooperative Management

Abstract

This thesis deals with the law of shared hydrocarbons – a body of general rules of international law governing the management of two categories of shared, common hydrocarbon resources: (a) hydrocarbon resources situated in maritime areas of overlapping claims, and (b) hydrocarbon resources straddling maritime boundaries between neighboring States.

This thesis examines the rights and obligations of coastal States that share hydrocarbon resources. It also addresses the issue of shared State responsibility in the context of shared hydrocarbons with particular emphasis on harm to the marine environment originating from activities undertaken in cooperation with respect to these resources.