Because the water is fairly shallow and reachable by divers, the waters over the continental shelves have been explored by humans more than any other area of the ocean. Most commercial fishing areas are located over the shelves, as are those areas from which oil and natural gas are extracted.

The best-known shelves are those off the coasts of the United States, eastern Canada, western Europe, and Japan. In these places, scientific studies are routinely conducted and the information is made available to everyone. Oil companies that have worked in other areas, such as the Persian Gulf, have obtained knowledge about them. Oceanographic organizations have studied the Red Sea, the Yellow Sea, and the shelf off the coasts of Argentina and northwestern Africa. However, some developing countries have closed their waters to foreign scientists; as a result, little is known about those shelves.

Impact of the Continental Margin on Human Life