Guidelines for navigation and overflight in the exclusive economic zone

Several significant international incidents in Asian exclusive economic zones (EEZs) have underscored the ambiguity and lack of agreement regarding the regime governing foreign military activities in coastal States’ EEZs. A group of senior officials and analysts participated in their personal capacities in a dialogue from 2002–2005 that discussed the issues with a view to improving mutual understanding of the regime and finding areas of agreement. The Tokyo meeting in September 2005 reached consensus on some voluntary, non-binding guidelines that are presented here. The guidelines are based selectively on the 1982 UNCLOS, State practice and emerging ‘soft’ law, and attempt to balance the interests of coastal States and user States. It is hoped that they may serve as the basis for discussion and eventual agreements between governments.     

Beneficiation and digestion of Georgia offshore phosphates

Abstract

The U.S. Bureau of Mines conducted beneficiation and digestion tests to evaluate the potential of recovering P₂O₅ from an apatite deposit located 10 nautical miles offshore Savannah, GA, in the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). A 1.8 metric ton sample containing 1.0–1.5% P₂O₅ was obtained in a cooperative drilling project involving the Bureau of Mines, the Marine Minerals Technology Center‐Continental Shelf Division, the Minerals Management Service, and the Georgia Nonenergy Minerals Offshore Task Force. Beneficiation methods were evaluated with the goal of producing a 29–31% P₂O₅ concentrate with a CaO: P₂O₅ratio of less than 1.6: 1. These specifications were obtained using a combination of gravity separation and flotation. Comparative leaching tests conducted using EEZ, Idaho, and Florida phosphate concentrates showed that these EEZ phosphates behaved similarly to land‐based phosphates. The results suggest that as land‐based phosphate deposits are depleted, ocean phosphates represent a feasible alternate source.     

Deep-sea Fe-Mn Crusts from the Northeast Atlantic Ocean: Composition and Resource Considerations

Eighteen deep-sea ferromanganese crusts (Fe-Mn crusts) from 10 seamounts in the northeast Atlantic were studied. Samples were recovered from water depths of ～1,200 to ～4,600 m from seamounts near Madeira, the Canary and Azores islands, and one sample from the western Mediterranean Sea.

The mineralogical and chemical compositions of the samples indicate that the crusts are typical continental margin, hydrogenetic Fe-Mn crusts. The Fe-Mn crusts exhibit a Co + Cu + Ni maximum of 0.96 wt%. Platinum-group element contents analyzed for five samples showed Pt contents from 153 to 512 ppb.

The resource potential of Fe-Mn crusts within and adjacent to the Portuguese Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is evaluated to be comparable to that of crusts in the central Pacific, indicating that these Atlantic deposits may be an important future resource.     

On the use of Atterberg limits on marine soils

Abstract

On the basis of the Atterberg indexes of various sediments collected in the Mediterranean Sea, we select two major parameters indicative of the mechanical behavior of marine soils: the sedimentary facies (i.e., mechanism of deposition expressed by silt content) and the clay mineral association characterized by smectite content in the fraction finer than 2 μm. Activity and real thixotropic ability appear to be particularly important parameters in marine engineering; better values are obtained by a double test operation in distilled and marine water.     

Occurrence and ingestion of microplastics by zooplankton in Kenya's marine environment: first documented evidence

Microplastics can be ingested by marine organisms and may lead to negative impacts at the base of marine food chains. This study investigated the occurrence and composition of microplastics in the sea-surface water and sought evidence of ingestion by zooplankton. Surface seawater was collected using a stainless-steel bucket and sieved directly through a stainless-steel sieve (250-µm mesh), while a 500-μm mesh net was towed horizontally to collect zooplankton, at 11 georeferenced stations off the Kenyan coast in February 2017, on board the national research vessel RV Mtafiti. Microplastic particles were sorted and characterised using an Optika dissecting microscope. Polymer types were identified using an ALPHA Platinum attenuated total reflection—Fourier-transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectrometer. A total of 149 microplastic particles, with an average abundance of 110 particles m^–3, were found in the surface seawater. A total of 129 particles were found ingested by zooplankton groups, where Chaetognatha, Copepoda, Amphipoda and fish larvae ingested 0.46, 0.33, 0.22 and 0.16 particles ind.^–1, respectively. Filaments dominated both the surface-water microplastics and the ingested microplastics, contributing 76% and 97% to those compositions, respectively. White particles were prevalent in the water (51%), whereas black was the colour found most commonly (42%) across the zooplankton groups. The sizes of particles that were in the water were in the range of 0.25–2.4 mm, and those ingested ranged between 0.01 and 1.6 mm. Polypropylene was predominant in the surface water, whereas low-density polyethylene was the most-ingested polymer type. The results provide the first documented evidence of the occurrence, composition and ingestion of microplastics by zooplankton in Kenya's marine environment, indicating that microplastics have the potential to enter pelagic food webs and cause pollution in the study area.     

Marine ferromanganese concretions from the polish exclusive economic zone: Influence of major inflows of north sea water

Ferromanganese concretions within the Polish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) are found mainly in the depth range 60–70 m on the thresholds between the Bomholm Basin and Slupsk Furrow and between the Gotland and Gdansk Basins. They also occur on elevations of the seafloor within the Bomholm Basin, on the southern slopes of Slupsk Furrow, and on the lower southwestern slopes of the Gotland Basin. They occur mainly as surface deposits on very thin (<0.2 m), poorly sorted lag deposits. The concretions are predominantly discoidal and are formed around a single nucleus of sandstone or erratic rock of variable size. The ferromanganese oxides display internal layering with alternate layers of almost black manganese oxides and buff iron axyhydroxides. The concretions consist mainly of todorokite and quartz, with lesser amounts of feldspar, kaolinite, and montmorillonite. They are characterized by relatively high Fe/Mn ratios (0.9–3.5) and high contents of detrital elements (Ti, Na, K, Ca, and Mg) but low contents of the transition elements (Cu, Zn, Pb, Cr, Co, and Ni). The deposits are associated with the very dynamic environment near the halocline, where internal waves erode the sediment and create conditions of sediment nondeposition favorable for the formation of the concretions. A number of factors contribute to the high abundance of ferromanganese concretions in the Baltic Sea. One is the high input of iron and manganese by the rivers draining into it This is a consequence of the widespread occurrence of bogs and swamps in the catchment area of the Baltic Sea, which results in the river waters having high humic acid contents and low pH. Another major factor is the buildup of dissolved iron and manganese in the anoxic basins of the Baltic Sea during periods of stagnation. These waters are flushed during major inflow events, when oxygenated water from the North Sea displaces the stagnant waters of the anoxic basins. Iron and manganese in these waters are then transported laterally and deposited in the surface of ferromanganese concretions on topographic highs. We believe that the iron is deposited rapidly after such events but that the manganese is deposited over a much longer time period, thus accounting for the layering in the concretions. The rate of deposition of these elements is essentially controlled by the input of oxygen in the waters of the North Sea. These periods of major inflows are grouped but significant events, for concretions occur on average about 11 times per century. We therefore estimate that the concretions have grown much more slowly than previously thought (about 0.013–0.018 mm/yr), and that a concretion 20 mm in diameter would have an age of about 500–800 years. Higher concentrations of heavy metals have been recorded in the outer layers of the concretions, and it is possible that these can serve as indicators of heavy‐metal pollution in the Baltic Sea. The concretions range from sporadic to intermediate abundance. As such, they have no economic potential.     

Marine spatial planning in the Middle East: Crossing the policy-planning divide

Many countries have begun marine spatial planning (MSP) efforts in the past decade and much academic and professional literature reviews and analyzes these processes. Relevant research that can contribute greatly to new efforts at MSP compares efforts, both recent and historical, with ideals set for spatial planning processes. This research addresses the extent to which paradigms from the planning practice and the policy field can be relevant for the MSP context. It does so by analyzing the interim products of an MSP process addressing the Mediterranean Sea area in the waters adjacent to the State of Israel. Results emphasize the potential contribution of public policy analysis and planning to critique outcomes of the MSP process with the aim of improving outcomes and devising best practices. This type of analysis can inform MSP as it becomes an accepted practice as a mainstream tool in the field of environmental planning. The complexity and challenge of spatial planning when policy foundations are minimal is highlighted in the results.     

Marine Geodesy (1975–1979)— to the International Association of Geodesy,Section 1

Abstract

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been developed during the last decade. Their land‐based applications range from land information management, urban planning, and environmental research to engineering design and management in the utility and oil industries, geological subsurface analysis, and others. However, applications of GIS in the marine environment are still in the initial stages. This may be due to, among other things, the large marine data sets, the demands of 3D data processing, and the difficulty of ocean data acquisition.

This article presents the result of the development of an integrated Marine Geographic Information System (MGIS) for the exploration and development of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the U.S. Pacific Islands region by the Pacific Mapping Center, University of Hawaii. Features such as spatial marine data processing, integration of GIS and mapping systems, 3D data structures, and simulation and animation of marine operations are developed and applied in this system. Since MGIS applications in EEZ are related to many disciplines in marine sciences and engineering, an operational MGIS should be an integrated system in which both basic GIS and marine application systems are combined into a single geo‐referenced system, In addition to other applications, this MGIS has been used: (1) to select a potential deep‐water research site off the island of Hawaii for the State of Hawaii Department of Business, Economic, and Development (DBED); (2) to generate a three‐dimensional database and use it for the navigation and simulation of underwater operations of an underwater research vehicle; and (3) to produce two 2° × 2° mosaic sheets of sonar images, which meet the USGS standard for a sonar image atlas.     

国际海洋边界划定与目前状况

本文简要描述了国际海洋边界划定与目前状况，其内容包括海洋边界划定，边界划定与海洋法，世界海洋区域及美国、俄罗斯划界概况和专属经济区与大陆架等问题。文章呼呈我国应加速海洋立法过程，尽快划出专属经济区与大陆架边界。     

Estimates of fishery potentials of the EEZ of India

An attempt has been made to estimate the fishery potentials of the EEZ of India on the basis of data on primary and secondary production. The total column primary production and zooplankton production have been calculated to be 265·9 and 9 million tonnes of carbon per year, respectively. From these values the fishery potential has been estimated as 2·5 million tonnes per year. To this, if we add the estimated demersal fish catch, being 1·2 million tonnes per year, the total potential yield comes to 3·7 million tonnes per year. Since the present average total catch is about 1·6 million tonnes in a year, the fish catch could be doubled.