Hydrocarbon gases in deposits from mud volcanoes in the Sorokin Trough, north-eastern Black Sea

Hydrocarbon gases were determined in sediments from three mud volcanoes in the Sorokin Trough. In comparison to a reference station outside the mud volcano area, the deposits are characterized by an enrichment of high-molecular hydrocarbons (C₂–C₄), an absence of unsaturated homologues, a predominance of iso-butane in comparison with n-butane, and the presence of gas hydrate. The molecular composition of the hydrocarbon gases suggests their deep sources and thermogenic origin. In the pelagic sediments at the reference station, the methane concentration is relatively low (up to 49 ml/l); maximum concentrations are reached in deposits of the Dvurechenskii mud volcano (up to 400 ml/l). It was the first time that gas hydrate was sampled at the Dvurechenskii mud volcano. The gas extracted by dissociation of hydrate samples was dominated by methane (99.5%) with low amounts of ethane and propane (less than 0.5%). The isotopic composition of the methane varies between –62 and –66 PDB in ¹³C, and between –185 and –209 SMOW in D, indicating a mainly biogenic origin with an admixture of thermogenic gas.     

Mud volcanoes and gas hydrates in the Anaximander mountains (Eastern Mediterranean Sea)

Detailed multibeam, sedimentological, and geophysical surveys provide ample new data to confirm that the Anaximander Mountains (Eastern Mediterranean) are an important area for active mud volcanism and gas hydrate formation. More than 3000 km of multibeam track length was acquired during two recent missions and 80 gravity and box cores were recovered. Morphology and backscatter data of the study area have better resolution than previous surveys, and very detailed morphology maps have been made of the known targeted mud volcanoes (Amsterdam, Kazan and Kula), especially the Amsterdam “crater” and the related mud breccia flows. Gas hydrates collected repeatedly from a large area of Amsterdam mud volcano at a sub-bottom depth of around 0.3–1.5 m resemble compacted snow and have a rather flaky form. New gas hydrate sites were found at Amsterdam mud volcano, including the mud flow sloping off to the south. Gas hydrates sampled for the first time at Kazan mud volcano are dispersed throughout the core samples deeper than 0.3 m and display a ‘rice’-like appearance. Relative chronology and AMS dating of interbedded pelagic sediments (Late Holocene hemipelagic, sapropel layer S1 and ash layers) within the mud flows indicate that successive eruptions of Kula mud volcano have a periodicity of about 5–10 kyrs. New mud volcanoes identified on the basis of multibeam backscatter intensity were sampled, documented as active and named “Athina” and “Thessaloniki”. Gas hydrates were sampled also in Thessaloniki mud volcano, the shallowest (1264 m) among all the active Mediterranean sites, at the boundary of the gas hydrate stability zone. Biostratigraphical analyses of mud breccia clasts indicated that the source of the subsurface sedimentary sequences consists of Late Cretaceous limestones, Paleocene siliciclastic rocks, Eocene biogenic limestones and Miocene mudstones. Rough estimations of the total capacity of the Anaximander mud volcanoes in methane gas are 2.56–6.40 km³.     

Evidence of subsurface anaerobic biodegradation of hydrocarbons and potential secondary methanogenesis in terrestrial mud volcanoes

The assessment of gas origin in mud volcanoes and related petroleum systems must consider post-genetic processes which may alter the original molecular and isotopic composition of reservoir gas. Beyond eventual molecular and isotopic fractionation due to gas migration and microbial oxidation, investigated in previous studies, we now demonstrate that mud volcanoes can show signals of anaerobic biodegradation of natural gas and oil in the subsurface. A large set of gas geochemical data from more than 150 terrestrial mud volcanoes worldwide has been examined. Due to the very low amount of C₂₊ in mud volcanoes, isotopic ratios of ethane, propane and butane (generally the best tracers of anaerobic biodegradation) are only available in a few cases. However, it is observed that ¹³C-enriched propane is always associated with positive δ¹³C_CO2 values, which are known indicators of secondary methanogenesis following anaerobic biodegradation of petroleum. Data from carbon isotopic ratio of CO₂ are available for 134 onshore mud volcanoes from 9 countries (Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Russia, Turkmenistan, Trinidad, Italy, Japan and Taiwan). Exactly 50% of mud volcanoes, all releasing thermogenic or mixed methane, show at least one sample with δ¹³C_CO2 > +5‰ (PDB). Thermogenic CH₄ associated with positive carbon isotopic ratio of CO₂ generally maintains its δ¹³C-enriched signature, which is therefore not perturbed by the lighter secondary microbial gas. There is, however, high variability in the δ¹³C_CO2 values within the same mud volcanoes, so that positive δ¹³C_CO2 values can be found in some vents and not in others, or not continuously in the same vent. This can be due to high sensitivity of δ¹³C_CO2 to gas–water–rock interactions or to the presence of differently biodegraded seepage systems in the same mud volcano. However, finding a positive δ¹³C_CO2 value should be considered highly indicative of anaerobic biodegradation and further analyses should be made, especially if mud volcanoes are to be used as pathfinders of the conditions indicative of subsurface hydrocarbon accumulations in unexplored areas.     

Gas hydrates in shallow deposits of the Amsterdam mud volcano, Anaximander Mountains, Northeastern Mediterranean Sea

We investigated gas hydrate in situ inventories as well as the composition and principal transport mechanisms of fluids expelled at the Amsterdam mud volcano (AMV; 2,025 m water depth) in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. Pressure coring (the only technique preventing hydrates from decomposition during recovery) was used for the quantification of light hydrocarbons in near-surface deposits. The cores (up to 2.5 m in length) were retrieved with an autoclave piston corer, and served for analyses of gas quantities and compositions, and pore-water chemistry. For comparison, gravity cores from sites at the summit and beyond the AMV were analyzed. A prevalence of thermogenic light hydrocarbons was inferred from average C₁/C₂₊ ratios <35 and δ¹³C-CH₄ values of ?50.6‰. Gas venting from the seafloor indicated methane oversaturation, and volumetric gas–sediment ratios of up to 17.0 in pressure cores taken from the center demonstrated hydrate presence at the time of sampling. Relative enrichments in ethane, propane, and iso-butane in gas released from pressure cores, and from an intact hydrate piece compared to venting gas suggest incipient crystallization of hydrate structure II (sII). Nonetheless, the co-existence of sI hydrate can not be excluded from our dataset. Hydrates fill up to 16.7% of pore volume within the sediment interval between the base of the sulfate zone and the maximum sampling depth at the summit. The concave-down shapes of pore-water concentration profiles recorded in the center indicate the influence of upward-directed advection of low-salinity fluids/fluidized mud. Furthermore, the SO ₄ ^2? and Ba²⁺ pore-water profiles in the central part of the AMV demonstrate that sulfate reduction driven by the anaerobic oxidation of methane is complete at depths between 30 cm and 70 cm below seafloor. Our results indicate that methane oversaturation, high hydrostatic pressure, and elevated pore-water activity caused by low salinity promote fixing of considerable proportions of light hydrocarbons in shallow hydrates even at the summit of the AMV, and possibly also of other MVs in the region. Depending on their crystallographic structure, however, hydrates will already decompose and release hydrocarbon masses if sediment temperatures exceed ca. 19.3°C and 21.0°C, respectively. Based on observations from other mud volcanoes, the common occurrence of such temperatures induced by heat flux from below into the immediate subsurface appears likely for the AMV.     

Hydrocarbon gases in sediments and mud breccia from the central and eastern part of the Mediterranean Ridge

 Microbiologically produced hydrocarbon gases (HCGs) in normal pelagic sediments have lithologically controlled distribution – their content increases sharply in organic-rich sapropels. Generally, the HCG content is low (<10000 nl/l), The amount of heavy HCGs is high (up to 60%, unsaturated HCGs dominate the saturated ones, and ethylene is prevalent. The same features were found in sediment and mud breccia from inactive mud volcanoes. Thermogenic HCG was determined in active mud volcanoes and in a high salinity fluid vent. They are characterized by: high methane concentration, δ¹³C(CH₄) =−37.1 to −57.8%, essential ethane contents (2–7%), absence of unsaturated HCG, and the prevalence of iso-over n-butane.     

Gas hydrate accumulation at the Håkon Mosby Mud Volcano

Gas hydrate (GH) accumulation is characterized and modeled for the Håkon Mosby mud volcano, ca. 1.5?km across, located on the Norway–Barents–Svalbard margin. Pore water chemical and isotopic results based on shallow sediment cores as well as geothermal and geomorphological data suggest that the GH accumulation is of a concentric pattern controlled by and formed essentially from the ascending mud volcano fluid. The gas hydrate content of sediment peaks at 25% by volume, averaging about 1.2% throughout the accumulation. The amount of hydrate methane is estimated at ca. 10⁸?m³ STP, which could account for about 1–10% of the gas that has escaped from the volcano since its origin.     

The thermal structure of the Dvurechenskii mud volcano and its implications for gas hydrate stability and eruption dynamics

The sediment temperature distribution at mud volcanoes provides insights into their activity and into the occurrence of gas hydrates. If ambient pressure and temperature conditions are close to the limits of the gas hydrate stability field, the sediment temperature distribution not only limits the occurrence of gas hydrates, but is itself influenced by heat production and consumption related to the formation and dissociation of gas hydrates. Located in the Sorokin Trough in the northern Black Sea, the Dvurechenskii mud volcano (DMV) was in the focus of detailed investigations during the M72/2 and M73/3a cruises of the German R/V Meteor and the ROV Quest 4000 m in February and March 2007. A large number of in-situ sediment temperature measurements were conducted from the ROV and with a sensor-equipped gravity corer. Gas hydrates were sampled in pressurized cores using a dynamic autoclave piston corer (DAPC). The thermal structure of the DMV suggests a regime of fluid flow at rates decreasing from the summit towards the edges of the mud volcano, accompanied by intermittent mud expulsion at the summit. Modeled gas hydrate dissociation temperatures reveal that the gas hydrates at the DMV are very close to the stability limits. Changes in heat flow due to variable seepage rates probably do not result in changes in sediment temperature but are compensated by gas hydrate dissociation and formation.     

Multidisciplinary investigations exploring indicators of gas hydrate occurrence in the Krishna–Godavari Basin offshore, east coast of India

We report some main results of multidisciplinary investigations carried out within the framework of the Indian National Gas Hydrate Program in 2002–2003 in the Krishna–Godavari Basin offshore sector, east coast of India, to explore indicators of likely gas hydrate occurrence suggested by preliminary multi-channel seismic reflection data and estimates of gas hydrate stability zone thickness. Swath bathymetry data reveal new evidence of three distinct geomorphic units representing (1) a delta front incised by several narrow valleys and mass flows, (2) a deep fan in the east and (3) a WNW–ESE-trending sedimentary ridge in the south. Deep-tow digital side-scan sonar, multi-frequency chirp sonar, and sub-bottom profiler records indicate several surface and subsurface gas-escape features with a highly resolved stratification within the upper 50 m sedimentary strata. Multi-channel seismic reflection data show the presence of bottom simulating reflections of continuous to discrete character. Textural analyses of 76 gravity cores indicate that the sediments are mostly silty clay. Geochemical analyses reveal decreasing downcore pore water sulphate (SO₄ ²⁻) concentrations (28.7 to <4 mM), increasing downcore methane (CH₄) concentrations (0–20 nM) and relatively high total organic carbon contents (1–2.5%), and microbial analyses a high abundance of microbes in top core sediments and a low abundance of sulphate-reducing bacteria in bottom core sediments. Methane-derived authigenic carbonates were identified in some cores. Combined with evidence of gas-escape features in association with bottom simulating reflections, the findings strongly suggest that the physicochemical conditions prevailing in the study area are highly conducive to methane generation and gas hydrate occurrence. Deep drilling from aboard the JOIDES Resolution during 2006 has indeed confirmed the presence of gas hydrate in the Krishna–Godavari Basin offshore.     

Characteristics of the bottom simulating reflectors near mud diapirs: offshore southwestern Taiwan

Single-channel seismic recording was carried out off the southwestern coast of Taiwan. Six characteristic seismic facies associated with bottom simulating reflectors (BSRs) and mud diapirs are identified. The existence of reflections which mimic the seafloor, the reverse polarity, weak amplitude blocks, and strong diffraction patterns around the mud diapirs all suggest that gas hydrates exist in the deep-water regions. The bases of the hydrate stability zones upturn in the vicinity of mud volcanoes. The high heat flows of mud volcanoes provide heat sources which destabilize the gas hydrates and upturn the BSRs. Received: 24 March 1999 / Revision accepted: 10 December 1999     

Vodyanitskii mud volcano,Sorokin trough,Black Sea: Geological characterization and quantification of gas bubble streams

Vodyanitskii mud volcano is located at a depth of about 2070 m in the Sorokin Trough, Black sea. It is a 500-m wide and 20-m high cone surrounded by a depression, which is typical of many mud volcanoes in the Black Sea. 75 kHz sidescan sonar show different generations of mud flows that include mud breccia, authigenic carbonates, and gas hydrates that were sampled by gravity coring. The fluids that flow through or erupt with the mud are enriched in chloride (up to ∼650 mmol L⁻¹ at ∼150-cm sediment depth) suggesting a deep source, which is similar to the fluids of the close-by Dvurechenskii mud volcano. Direct observation with the remotely operated vehicle Quest revealed gas bubbles emanating at two distinct sites at the crest of the mud volcano, which confirms earlier observations of bubble-induced hydroacoustic anomalies in echosounder records. The sediments at the main bubble emission site show a thermal anomaly with temperatures at ∼60 cm sediment depth that were 0.9 °C warmer than the bottom water. Chemical and isotopic analyses of the emanated gas revealed that it consisted primarily of methane (99.8%) and was of microbial origin (δD-CH₄ = −170.8‰ (SMOW), δ¹³C-CH₄ = −61.0‰ (V-PDB), δ¹³C-C₂H₆ = −44.0‰ (V-PDB)). The gas flux was estimated using the video observations of the ROV. Assuming that the flux is constant with time, about 0.9 ± 0.5 × 10⁶ mol of methane is released every year. This value is of the same order-of-magnitude as reported fluxes of dissolved methane released with pore water at other mud volcanoes. This suggests that bubble emanation is a significant pathway transporting methane from the sediments into the water column.     

In situ hydrocarbon concentrations from pressurized cores in surface sediments, Northern Gulf of Mexico

Two newly developed coring devices, the Multi-Autoclave-Corer and the Dynamic Autoclave Piston Corer were deployed in shallow gas hydrate-bearing sediments in the northern Gulf of Mexico during research cruise SO174 (Oct–Nov 2003). For the first time, they enable the retrieval of near-surface sediment cores under ambient pressure. This enables the determination of in situ methane concentrations and amounts of gas hydrate in sediment depths where bottom water temperature and pressure changes most strongly influence gas/hydrate relationships. At seep sites of GC185 (Bush Hill) and the newly discovered sites at GC415, we determined the volume of low-weight hydrocarbons (C₁ through C₅) from nine pressurized cores via controlled degassing. The resulting in situ methane concentrations vary by two orders of magnitudes between 0.031 and 0.985 mol kg^− 1 pore water below the zone of sulfate depletion. This includes dissolved, free, and hydrate-bound CH₄. Combined with results from conventional cores, this establishes a variability of methane concentrations in close proximity to seep sites of five orders of magnitude. In total four out of nine pressure cores had CH₄ concentrations above equilibrium with gas hydrates. Two of them contain gas hydrate volumes of 15% (GC185) and 18% (GC415) of pore space. The measurements prove that the highest methane concentrations are not necessarily related to the highest advection rates. Brine advection inhibits gas hydrate stability a few centimeters below the sediment surface at the depth of anaerobic oxidation of methane and thus inhibits the storage of enhanced methane volumes. Here, computerized tomography (CT) of the pressure cores detected small amounts of free gas. This finding has major implications for methane distribution, possible consumption, and escape into the bottom water in fluid flow systems related to halokinesis.     

Mud volcanoes and gas vents in the Okhotsk Sea area

Gas emissions from mud volcanoes on Sakhalin Island and water-column gas flares arising from cold seeps in the Okhotsk Sea appear to be related. They are likely activated by tectonic movements along the transform plate boundary separating the Okhotsk Sea Plate from the Eurasian and Amur plates. Gas vents (flares) and methane anomalies occur in the waters offshore Sakhalin Island, along with NE-SW-trending mounds and fluid escape structures on the seafloor. The intersection of the NE-striking transverse faults on land with the Central Sakhalin and Hokkaido-Sakhalin shear zones apparently determines the sites of mud volcanoes, a pattern that continues offshore where the intersection with the East Sakhalin and West Derugin shear zones determines the sites of the submarine gas vents.     

The El Arraiche mud volcano field at the Moroccan Atlantic slope,Gulf of Cadiz

The El Arraiche field is a new mud volcano field discovered near the Moroccan shelf edge in the Gulf of Cadiz that consists of 8 mud volcanoes in water depths from 200 to 700 m. The largest mud volcano in the field (Al Idrissi mud volcano) is 255 m high and 5.4 km wide. The cluster was discovered during a survey with the RV Belgica and studied further during Leg 2 of the TTR 12 survey onboard the R/V Prof Logachev. The 2002 surveys yielded detailed multibeam bathymetry over a 700 km² study area, dense grids of high-resolution seismic data, deep-tow sub bottom profiles, sidescan sonar mosaics over the major structures. Selected video imagery lines, video guided grab samples, dredge samples, gravity cores, and box cores were collected for groundtruthing purposes. Eight mud volcanoes in water depths from 200 to 700 m cluster around two, sub-parallel anticlines and associated active extensional faults. Rock clasts and regional seismic data locate the El Arraiche field over a Late Miocene–Pliocene extensional basin. The onset of mud volcanic activity is estimated at about 2.4 Ma and probably roots in the Cretaceous–Miocene accretionary wedge. Stacked outflows are visible up to a depth of about 500 m below the sea floor. The occurrence of long-lived mud volcanoes bear witness to continued overpressure generation at depth, either by in situ oil and gas generation or by focussed flow and accumulation in the area. Geochemical analyses of pore water from cores demonstrate the presence of thermogenic hydrocarbon processes. The activity of the mud volcanoes is indicated by the thickness of hemi-pelagic sediments covering extruded mud breccia, the occurrence of seep-typical fauna, the degree of mixing between thermogenic and biogenic hydrocarbon processes, or the depth to the base of the sulphate reduction zone. Given its structural setting and the evidence of thermogenic and biogenic hydrocarbons, the area has promising hydrocarbon potential but remains untested.     

A comparative mineralogical study of gas-related sediments of the Gulf of Cádiz

The Gulf of Cádiz area has been extensively surveyed in recent years and several gas-related fluid escape seafloor structures have been identified. In this study, gravity cores, collected during the ANASTASYA/00 and ANASTASYA/01 cruises, on mud volcanoes, hemipelagic sediments and dredged material from diapiric structures, have been studied. A comparative mineralogical analysis by XRD and SEM of samples from different areas has been performed in order to determine whether there is a characteristic mineralogy related to these fluid escape structures, and also to determine the origin of the mud matrix and constrain the depth of the parent units. The mineralogical analysis reflects the different origins of the different units described in the cores: hemipelagic material of the slope, clays that underlie the mud volcanoes and are discharged at the sea bottom surface, and authigenic and diagenetic minerals possibly involved in the anaerobic oxidation of methane in the mud volcano sediments.     

Hydrocarbon test in lower-layer atmosphere to predict deep-sea petroleum or hydrate in the Okinawa Trough: an example

INTRODUCTIONItisaverypossiblenewmethodforustopredictdeep seapetroleumorhydratebymeansoftestinglighthydrocarbonandanalyzingCisotopicoflower layeratmosphericsamplesnearseasurface Thismethodisbasedonthetheoryofoilandgasmicro seepages,whichsuggeststhatsomegasessuchasCH4,CO2 etc .(Cheng ,1 999;Daietal.,1 994 ;Daietal.,1 995;Teder,1 985;Jonesetal.,1 985;Fangetal.,2 0 0 0 ;Guo ,1 995;Gongetal.,2 0 0 2 ;Huangetal.,1 998) ,willcontinuallymigrateupwardsintofracturesandporosityofrocks ,seabedse…     

Mud volcanoes and gas hydrates in the Black Sea: new data from Dvurechenskii and Odessa mud volcanoes

Meteor cruise M52/1 documented the presence of gas hydrates in sediments from mud volcanoes in the Sorokin Trough of the Black Sea. In a mud flow on the Odessa mud volcano, a carbonate crust currently forms in association with anaerobic methane oxidation. Dvurechenskii mud volcano (DMV), a flat-topped mud pie-type structure, appeared to be very active. Pore water in sediments of DMV is enriched in several constituents, such as ammonium and chloride, which seem to originate at depth. High sediment temperatures of up to 16.5 °C in close contact to the ambient bottom water of 9 °C also suggest strong advective transport of material from greater depth. Steep temperature gradients indicate a high fluid and/or mud flux within DMV, which is confirmed by the shape of the pore water profiles. Active fluid expulsion sites are evidenced by direct seafloor observation, and a potential flux of methane from the sediment to the bottom water is indicated by water-column methane measurements.     

Isotopic composition of gas hydrates in subsurface sediments from offshore Sakhalin Island, Sea of Okhotsk

Hydrate-bearing sediment cores were retrieved from recently discovered seepage sites located offshore Sakhalin Island in the Sea of Okhotsk. We obtained samples of natural gas hydrates and dissolved gas in pore water using a headspace gas method for determining their molecular and isotopic compositions. Molecular composition ratios C₁/_C2+ from all the seepage sites were in the range of 1,500–50,000, while δ¹³C and δD values of methane ranged from ?66.0 to ?63.2‰ VPDB and ?204.6 to ?196.7‰ VSMOW, respectively. These results indicate that the methane was produced by microbial reduction of CO₂. δ¹³C values of ethane and propane (i.e., ?40.8 to ?27.4‰ VPDB and ?41.3 to ?30.6‰ VPDB, respectively) showed that small amounts of thermogenic gas were mixed with microbial methane. We also analyzed the isotopic difference between hydrate-bound and dissolved gases, and discovered that the magnitude by which the δD hydrate gas was smaller than that of dissolved gas was in the range 4.3–16.6‰, while there were no differences in δ¹³C values. Based on isotopic fractionation of guest gas during the formation of gas hydrate, we conclude that the current gas in the pore water is the source of the gas hydrate at the VNIIOkeangeologia and Giselle Flare sites, but not the source of the gas hydrate at the Hieroglyph and KOPRI sites.     

The hydroacoustic method for the quantification of the gas flux from a submersed bubble plume

This article presents an inverse hydroacoustic method for the remote quantification of the total gas flux transported from an underwater bubble plume. The method includes the surveying of the bubble plume by a vertically looking echo sounder and the calculation of the flux using the spatial distribution of the ultrasound backscattering at a fixed depth. A simplified parameterization containing only a few parameters is introduced to describe the empirical bubble size distribution. The linear correlation between the backscattering cross section of the bubble stream and the vertical gas flux is found. The calculation procedure takes into account the occurrence of a gas hydrate film at the bubble’s surface. The influence of different parameters on the accuracy of the method is investigated. The resolution volume of the echo sounder corresponding to the fixed distance is considered as a two-dimensional spatial window. The method was applied to quantify the total convective methane flux at the Haakon-Mosby mud volcano (HMMV) depth 1280 m. The calculated values of the total flux near the bottom (100–400 t/year) are in good agreement with the independently estimated flux for the single bubble jet observed from the ROV (70 t/year). These calculations also show significant temporal variability of the flux at the HMMV. The total flux was found to vary by about a factor of 2–3 within time scales of days.     

泥火山与天然气水合物

系统地介绍了泥火山在全球的分布特征;阐述了水下泥火山形成的原因和机制;总结出4类泥火山的形成原因和两个泥火山形成机制;在此基础上深入地分析了天然气水合物与泥火山的关系及泥火山中天然气水合物的资源量。     

Gas and fluid venting at the Makran accretionary wedge off Pakistan

The Makran accretionary complex shows a distinct bottom-simulating reflector, indicating a thick gas-hydrate-bearing horizon between the deformational front and about 1350 m water depth which seals off the upward flow of gas-charged fluids. A field of presently inactive mud diapirs with elevations up to 65 m was discovered in the abyssal plain seawards of the deformation front, suggesting that in the past conditions were favorable for periodic but localized vigorous mud diapirism. Regional destabilization of the gas hydrate leading to focused flow was observed where deep-penetrating, active faults reach the base of the gas-hydrate layer, as in a deeply incised submarine canyon (2100–2500 m water depth). At this location we discovered seeps of methane and H₂S-rich fluids associated with chemoautotrophic vent faunas (e.g., Calyptogena sp.). Driven by the accretionary wedge dynamics, the landward part of the gas-hydrate layer below the Makran margin is being progressively uplifted. Due to reduced hydrostatic pressure and rising ocean bottom-water temperatures, gas hydrates are progressively destabilized and dissociated into hydrate water, methane and H₂S. Sediment temperatures lie outside the methane stability field wherever water depth is less than 800 m. Above this depth, upward migration of fluids to the seafloor is unimpeded, thus explaining the abundance of randomly distributed gas seeps observed at water depths of 350 to 800 m. Received: 14 June 1999 / Revision accepted: 6 February 2000