OIL IN THE CONTINENTAL SHELF OF
ARABIAN SEAS &BAY OF BENGAL
Editorials
Monday, September 21st, 2009
There
is oil in the Bay of Bengal and the evidence of Methane gas in the Shale
treasures of the Arabian Sea point to rich deposits of Carbon based riches on
the shorelines of Pakistan. Bangladesh,
Myanmar and Pakistan are stuck in protracted stalemates on resolving the
issues of the law of the sea.
Myanmar says India has extended the
maritime boundary unilaterally; Bangladesh to contest claims too
New
Delhi: India’s claim over 300,000 sq. km of seabed in the Bay of Bengal that
could potentially have large hydrocarbon reserves is being disputed by its
eastern neighbours Myanmar and Bangladesh.
Myanmar,
in a 4 August letter to the United Nations (UN), has complained that India has
unilaterally extended the maritime boundary between the two countries,
contravening a 1986 bilateral agreement. A copy of the letter is available on
the UN website.
The
maritime boundary between nations is an important reference point for
establishing claims over untapped oil and gas, and mineral wealth in
continental shelves.
Bangladesh
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on 18 June said that her government was also
planning to contest India’s and Myanmar’s claims to the extended continental
shelf. This was reported in the Daily Star, a local English newspaper.
A
continental shelf is the relatively shallow seabed surrounding a continent that
could, in many instances, extend beyond a country’s exclusive economic zone,
defined by the UN as a sea area within 200 nautical miles (360km) from the
shore.
The
UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos) permits countries to claim
continental shelf regions beyond the exclusive economic zone (giving exclusive
fishing and mining rights), provided they can back it up with scientific data.
On 12 May, India staked claim to large swathes of seabed under the Arabian Sea
and the Bay of Bengal, which a government scientist involved with the survey
process pegged at approximately 0.6 million sq. km of continental shelf. The
scientist asked not to be identified.
Mint
on 12 June reported that India’s claim was likely to also conflict with regions
claimed by Sri Lanka as its own, quoting top government officials involved in
the process.
India’s
external affairs ministry is likely to enter into bilateral discussions with
these countries and resolve the contentious issues, rather than wait for the UN
to take a call, said an official at the ministry of earth sciences, which was
involved in conducting surveys and technically establishing the extent of
India’s continental shelf.
“Every
country is going to be ambitious with its claims. There are obviously regions
that may be common to countries, but the way out is to draw a median line and
suitably apportion them,” said the official, who spoke on condition of
anonymity.
Spokespersons
from the ministry of external affairs—which submitted India’s claim—and
Myanmar’s high commission in New Delhi didn’t respond to emails and repeated
calls seeking comment.
Though
the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea may not have as copious oil reserves as
the Arctic circle, where a number of countries, from Russia to Denmark, are
staking claim under the UN treaty, India has a programme to tap gas hydrates,
which is seen as a major component of untapped seabed wealth.
India’s
national gas hydrate programme was started in 1997 by the petroleum ministry
along with Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd, GAIL (India) Ltd, Oil India Ltd,
Directorate General of Hydrocarbons, department of ocean development, National
Institute of Oceanography and National Geophysical Research Institute.
Methane,
the primary component of natural gas, can be trapped in crystalline ice-like
substances with water and small amounts of other gases. Methane hydrates are
stable in ocean floor sediment at depths greater than 300m, and where they
occur, they are known to cement loose sediment in a surface layer several
hundred metres thick. If this methane can be freed in an economically viable
manner, it will add to a country’s energy reserves. Posted: Tue, Aug 25 2009.
9:52 PM IST. Economy and Politics. Jacob P.
Huge
Oil Deposits Located Near Coast of Pakistan
An
estimated four to six million barrels of deposits of oil are located in the
240000 kilometres of Pakistan’s sea coast. Disclosing this Dr. Abdul Farah,
Director General National Institute of Oceanography (NIO). Karachi told a radio
news conference, that in addition to oil, mineral deposits could also be found
in the sea coast of the country. However, exploration for oil and mineral
deposits in the North Arabian Sea had so far been done by the foreign
companies…Huge oil deposits located near coast.
He said, in order to make our exploration for oil and mineral deposits
from the sea a research ship was needed. (Pakistan’s sea coast)(Business
Opinion)
He
said that a joint research programme of Pakistan and United States costing
three million dollars spread over five years had been approved recently under
which deep see exploration from 500 metres to 3000 metres would be undertaken
to see properties and the behaviour of monsoon with changes in the sea. He also
spoke of the Antarctica Scientific Expedition Mission undertaken by Pakistani
scientists and said. “we are the first Muslim country to have hoisted our flag
in Antarctica. Progress of the expedition since the members of the team reached
Antarctica on January 14 has so far been satisfactory”.
To a
question Dr. Farah said, Pakistan was the first country to carry out research
and establish its station at the same time in Antarctica. He said, members of
Pakistani expedition comprising scientists from NIO, Geological Survey of
Pakistan, Meteorological Department, Hussain Ebrahim Jamal Institute of Karachi
University, Pakistan Army and Navy will stay in Antarctica for one month to
carry out research work.
The
project which costed Rs. 8 crores most of it in foreign exchange enabled the
members of the expedition to set up Jinnah Station in Antarctica where an instrument
will be installed which by satellite will send figures of various aspects of
weather all the year round. The DG NIO also disclosed that Pakistan was the
first country to have completed arrangements for sending an expedition and
setting up a station in Antarctica. So far a total of 39 countries have set up
stations in Antarctica. He hoped Pakistan will be able to share its experience
gained from this expedition with other Islamic countries. To a question, he
said “we want to continue this expedition in future as well”.
He
explained that the success of the Antarctica expedition was possible due to the
cooperation of the Federal Government, Ministry of Science and Technology, and
scientists and experts of Pakistan Army and Navy, besides NIO. He said, members
of the expedition will collect samples of ice and stones of rock for scientific
studies of air radiation, temperature, etc. According to Dr. Farah, Pakistan
has established itself in the international efforts by sending its expedition
to Antarctica.
He
agreed with a questioner that industrialists had not yet responded positively
to invest in the research and development activity for science and technology.
To yet another question, he said, pollution has affected marine life of the
country. Only with the cooperation of industrialists can pollution be
controlled, he added. However, there was now awareness among the industrialists
to check pollution. Regarding growth of Mangroves along the coast Dr. Farah said
that this should be encouraged as it was a source of food for fish.
Publication: Economic Review Date: Tuesday, January 1 1991
The
Bay of Bengal is not the only Continental Shelf that is being contested. The
Arabian Sea is also being contested. Sir Creek makes a huge difference in the
number of Nautical miles which come under the control of Paksitan or Bharat.
Northwestern
branch of the Indian Ocean, covering 3,859,000 sq km/1,489,970 sq mi, with
India to the east, Pakistan and Iran to the north, and the Arabian Peninsula
and Somalia to the west. It is linked with the Red Sea via the Gulf of Aden,
and with the Gulf via the Gulf of Oman. Its mean depth is 2,730 m/8,956 ft. The
chief river flowing into the Arabian Sea is the Indus, which is linked with a
large submarine canyon in the continental shelf. The sea is rich in fish.
Surface
currents are driven by the monsoon winds, a northeasterly flow from the Somali
coast in summer known as the ‘Monsoon Drift’, with a weaker flow in the
opposite direction in winter. The Arabian Sea is divided into two basins, the
Somali and Arabian, separated by the Carlsberg ridge. This ridge is seismically
active, and divides in the Gulf of Aden, one part entering the Red Sea and the
other eventually linking with the Great Rift Valley system in eastern Africa.
The
Arabian Sea Large Marine Ecosystem (LME) is characterized by its tropical
climate. It encompasses three sub-regions in the Indian Ocean. The Western
Arabian Sea borders Somalia, Yemen and Oman; the Central Arabian Sea borders
Iran; the Eastern Arabian Sea borders India and Pakistan. Each sub-region has
its own originality in terms of current patterns, physical characteristics,
physiochemical qualities, dominant species and biodiversity. There is extensive
interchange of surface waters in the Indian Ocean between the Arabian Sea LME
and the Somali Current and Bay of Bengal LMEs. A few rivers (Indus, Euphrates
and Tigris) empty into the LME. LME book articles and chapters pertaining to
this LME include Dwivedi and Choubey, 1998; Bakun et al, 1998; Baars et al, 1998;
and Piontkovski, 1998.
Pakistan’s
Arabian Sea: Rich treasures lie under the waters of the Pakistani shoreline.
Every inch of Pakistani terrotory has to be defended in Sir Creek. Pakistan
loses hundreds of square miles in the Oil rich Arabian Sea
Productivity
The
continental shelf is widest off the Northwest coast of India. This region has
tropical cyclone storms. There is extensive interchange of surface waters in
the Indian Ocean, encompassing the Arabian Sea LME, the Somali Current LME and
the Bay of Bengal LME. Depending on monsoon winds, local topography, the width
and depth of the continental shelf, and drainage of coastal areas, there are
three coastal ecosystems, each characterized by its own productivity and
species distribution. For more information on these 3 sub-regions, see Dwivedi
and Choubey, 1998. There is a complex set of ecologic processes affecting
trophic enrichment, food distribution, and advection of swimming organisms. The
Arabian Sea LME is strongly influenced by monsoons. During the southwest
monsoon, from May to October, the winds in this region are from the southwest,
inducing a great deal of evaporation from the warm waters of the Arabian Sea,
and heavy rainfall along the coast of India. The winds blow toward India and
cause upwelling of low-oxygen waters.
There
is a concentration of fish in nearshore areas at that time. During the other
half of the year, the winds blow in the opposite direction, and not as
strongly. For a map of the southwest and northeast monsoons, see Bakun et al,
1998, pp 120 and 121. For more on surface circulation and on upwelling in the
Gulf of Aden, off Oman and off the Southwest Indian coast, see Bakun et al,
1998. For data on monsoons observed in 1992 and 1993, see Baars et al, 1998.
There is more information on the Arabian Sea’s geological and climatic
evolution, the role of JGOFS in the Arabian Sea, and on Arabian Sea seasonal
changes in upwelling and productivity. This tropical region shows great marine
biodiversity. The Arabian Sea LME is considered a Class I, highly productive
(>300 grams of Carbon per square meter per year (gC/m2-yr)) ecosystem based
on SeaWiFS global primary productivity estimates. For more information on
productivity in the Gulf of Aden, see Baars et al, 1998. For more information
on former Soviet expeditions to the Indian Ocean, conducting field surveys of
plankton fields and studying physical, chemical and biologic characteristics,
see Piontkovski, 1998. In this LME, there are clear differences in salinity in
water masses of different origin. Off of India’s southwest coast, mud banks help
to increase productivity.
http://www.eoearth.org/article/Arabian_Sea_large_marine_ecosystem
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URL: http://www.daily.pk/?p=11077
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