Ecosystems Of The Deep Oceans

This volume examines the deep sea ecosystem from a variety of perspectives. The initial chapters examine the deep-sea floor, the deep pelagic environment and the more specialised chemosynthetic environments of hydrothermal vents and cold seeps. These environments are examined from the perspective of the relationship of deep-sea animals to their physico-chemical environment. Later chapters examine the biogeography of the main deep oceans (Atlantic, Pacific and Indian) with particular attention to the downward flux of surface-derived organic matter and how this drives the processes within the deep-sea ecosystem. The peripheral deep seas including the polar seas and the marginal deep seas (inter alia the Mediterranean, Red, Caribbean and Okhotsk seas) are explored in the same context. The final chapters examine the processes occurring in the deep sea and include an analysis of why the deep sea has high species diversity, how the fauna respond to organic input and how species have adapted reproductive activity in the deep sea. The volume concludes with an analysis of the anthropogenic impact on the deep sea.

Ecosystems and Biodiversity in Deep Waters and High Seas outlines a number of options for the conservation and sustainable management of the deep seas and open oceans, including actions and measures that reflect an integrated approach to oceans management based on "ecological boundaries" rather than just political ones, giving higher levels of protection to vulnerable species like deep sea fish as well as to biologically and ecologically significant ecosystems such as cold water corals and hydrothermal vent communities.

The objective of this report is to provide an overview of the key socio-economic, management and governance issues relating to the conservation and sustainable use of deep-sea ecosystems and biodiversity. The report highlights our current understanding of these issues and identifies topics and areas that need further investigation to close gaps in knowledge. It also explores the needs and means for interfacing research with policy with a view to contributing to the political processes regarding deep-sea and high-seas governance, which are currently ongoing in various international flora within and outside the UN system. In addition, the report provides guidance on the future direction and focus of research on environmental, socio-economic and governance aspects in relation to the deep-sea.

This book compiles the main findings of the multidisciplinary long-term research program developed in the continental margin of one of the more productive and unknown areas of the world oceans, Northwest Africa. The more than 25,000 preserved fishes and benthic invertebrates and quantitative data collected in 342 trawling stations, the 267 oceanographic profiles, the 211 sediment samples and the 28,122 km2 prospected by multi˗beam echo sounding allowed to obtain an overview of the amazing biodiversity of the demersal and benthic fauna inhabiting soft- and hard-bottom habitats, as well as the fascinating geomorphology and oceanography, hidden in the Mauritanian slope.

The Law of the Seabed reviews the most pressing legal questions raised by the use and protection of natural resources on and underneath the world’s seabeds. While barely accessible, the seabed plays a major role in the Earth’s ecological balance. It is both a medium and a resource, and is central to the blue economy. New uses and new knowledge about seabed ecosystems, and the risks of disputes due to competing interests, urge reflection on which regulatory approaches to pursue. The regulation of ocean activities is essentially sector-based, and the book puts in parallel the international and national regimes for seabed mining, oil and gas, energy generation, bottom fisheries, marine genetic resources, carbon sequestration and maritime security operations, both within and beyond the national jurisdiction. The book contains seven parts respectively addressing the definition of the seabed from a multidisciplinary perspective, the principles of jurisdiction delimitation under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the regimes for use of non-living, living and marine biodiversity resources, the role of state and non-state actors, the laying and removal of installations, the principles for sustainable and equitable use (common heritage of mankind, precaution, benefit sharing), and management tools to ensure coexistence between activities as well as the protection of the marine environment.

The oceans are teeming with life of all kinds. Changing sea levels, plate tectonics, chemical cycling, sedimentation, and the atmosphere greatly impact these habitats. The ocean's currents and sea level are tied closely to weather patterns and in turn to such issues as global warming and El Nino. Oceans provides a complete overview of the ecosystem that exists in these bodies of water. From the coastal wetlands to the deep ocean waters, the geography, geology, chemistry, and physics of oceans are thoroughly examined in this volume. Today, the impact that human use of ocean resources has on these habitats, including habitat loss and overharvesting, is in constant debate. Oceans looks at these possible threats and concludes with a balanced look at the ways to manage the oceans, as well as the future of this ecosystem.

Long regarded as an empty and inhospitable environment, the deep ocean is rapidly emerging as an ecological hot spot with a remarkable diversity of biological life. Yet, the worlds oceans are currently on a dangerous trajectory of decline, threatened by acidification, oil and gas drilling, overfishing, and, in the long term, deep-sea mining, bioprospecting, and geo-engineering. In The Geopolitics of Deep Oceans, noted environmental sociologist John Hannigan examines the past, present and future of our planets final frontier. The author argues that our understanding of the deep - its definition, boundaries, value, ownership, health and future state - depends on whether we see it first and foremost as a resource cornucopia, a political chessboard, a shared commons, or a unique and threatened ecology. He concludes by locating a new storyline that imagines the oceans as a canary-in-the-mineshaft for gauging the impact of global climate change. The Geopolitics of Deep Oceans is a unique introduction to the geography, law, politics and sociology of the sub-surface ocean. It will appeal to anyone seriously concerned about the present state and future fate of the largest single habitat for life on our planet.