Claus, S.

De Hauwere, N.

Hernandez, F.

Oset Garcia, P.

Souza Dias, F.

Vanhoorne, B.

Open Marine Archive

- 52 - 
 
Using Marine Regions in communication 
De Hauwere Nathalie, Simon Claus, Francisco Souza Dias, Paula Oset García, Bart Vanhoorne and 
Francisco Hernandez 
Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), InnovOcean site, Wandelaarkaai 7, 8400 Oostende, Belgium 
E-mail: info@marineregions.org  
 
The Marine Regions Project started 4 year ago by integrating MarBound and VLIMAR into one web 
portal. Both projects were initiated in 2005 by the Flanders Marine Institute. MarBound contains a 
representation of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) of the world. The VLIMAR Gazetteer is a database 
with geographic (mainly marine) names of seas, sandbanks, seamounts, etc.  
 
The website (http://www.marineregions.org) offers a marine gazetteer with over 60,000 place names. 
Each geographic object has a unique ID, the MRGID. Each record is defined by one preferred name, with 
its synonyms, a place type (country, island, reef, Exclusive Economic Zone, …) and coordinates. 
Different relations exist between the different objects: part of, adjacent to, streams through,… This 
structure allows the user to group joint geographic units and to create a hierarchical classification of 
different places. 
 
Another section is on Maritime Boundaries. The shapefile of the Exclusive Economic Zones one of the 
most popular products with over 2500 yearly downloads. 
In 2016 new features are added: a layer with the territorial seas (the 12 nautical mile zone), together 
with a layer of the contiguous zone (from 12-24 nautical miles) and a layer with the internal waters for 
each country.  
 
Through the website it is possible to download different shapefiles of marine boundaries or access the 
URL’s of the web services. Both can be used in GIS Software or applications like StoryMaps to create 
your own map. By using the web services, the latest information will always be shown in your products. 
 
The website also offers some static maps, which can be used in publications, on website, etc. 
 
The information of Marine Regions may be used but is subject to two requirements:  
1. a mail should be sent to info@marineregions.org informing Marine Regions about the intended use 
of the data;  
2. If any of the information is published the following acknowledgments needs to be published 
alongside with it: Claus, S.; De Hauwere, N.; Vanhoorne, B.; Deckers, P.; Souza Dias, F.; Hernandez, 
F.; Mees, J. (2014). Marine Regions: Towards a global standard for georeferenced marine names and 
boundaries. Mar. Geod. 37(2): 99-125. hdl.handle.net/10.1080/01490419. 2014.902881. 
 
The list of publications in which Marine Regions played a role can be found online at 
http://www.marineregions.org/stats_pubs.php. One example is the map showing the Exclusive 
Economic Zones in National Geographic (2013) in an article on the research for natural resources in the 
American EEZ and the possible extension of the continental shelf. 
 
References 
- Claus, S.; De Hauwere, N.; Vanhoorne, B.; Deckers, P.; Souza Dias, F.; Hernandez, F.; Mees, J. (2014). 
Marine Regions: Towards a global standard for georeferenced marine names and boundaries. Mar. 
Geod. 37(2): 99-125. hdl.handle.net/10.1080/01490419.2014.902881  
- Ballard, R. (2013). Onbekende wateren. National Geographic Nederland-België 2013(November): 82-
87. In: National Geographic Nederland-België. G+J Publishing: Diemen. ISSN 1568-1718 
  


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