News Releases

11/21/2008 - Falling Prices, Credit Crunch Spell Trouble in the North Sea

The combination of falling oil prices and the credit crunch spells trouble for oil and gas production in the U.K. North Sea, said senior industry figures. The U.K. has been counting on steadily rising oil prices to make new projects in the heavily depleted basin profitable and is depending on a legion of small independent oil and gas companies to develop many of the remaining fields as major companies focus their efforts elsewhere. However, the price of North Sea benchmark Brent crude has fallen by more than half since July, the profitability of new fields is looking doubtful and the smaller companies that could develop them are struggling. Source: Rigzone

11/19/2008 - NOAA Releases Framework for U.S. Marine Protected Areas

The Framework for the National System of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) of the United States has been released by NOAA and the Department of the Interior. The Framework provides overarching guidance for collaborative efforts among federal, state, commonwealth, territorial, tribal and local governments and stakeholders to develop an effective national system of MPAs from existing sites and identify gaps in the protection of significant natural and cultural resources. The document includes guiding principles, key definitions, goals and objectives based on input from around the nation over the past several years and from two public comment periods.

11/19/2008 - Deep-Sea Observatory Off California Coast Goes Live

The Monterey Accelerated Research System (MARS)—the first deep-sea ocean observatory offshore of the continental United States went "live" on November 10, returning the first scientific data from 900 meters (3,000 feet) below the ocean surface. The MARS Observatory was six years and $13.5 million dollars in the making. Like the Hubble Space Telescope, the MARS Observatory is not designed for human occupation, but is operated remotely. The observatory will serve as both a "power strip" and a "high-speed internet connection" for scientific instruments in the deep sea. It will allow marine scientists to continuously monitor the dark, mysterious world of the deep sea, instead of relying on brief oceanographic cruises and instruments that run on batteries.

11/18/2008 - Golf-Ball-Like Shark Skin Isn't a Drag

Researchers have found that tiny vortices form in the cavities between the scales of a shark's skin, creating a buffer between the skin and ocean water. The tiny wells across the surface of the skin reduce drag like the dimples on a golf ball do, preventing turbulance from forming behind the shark. Amy Lang at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa and colleagues said this feature in shortfin mako sharks allows them to travel at up to 50 miles per hour. "It's like the difference between pushing a box over ball bearings instead of dragging it along the floor," says Lang. Soruce: New Scientist

11/16/2008 - Long-Lasting Earth-Treamor Seismometer Unveiled

Researchers from the Polytechnic University of Catalonia and the Spanish Council for Scientific Research have developed an ocean bed seismometer that operates using a data acquisition and storage system based on CompactFlash memory cards such as those used in commercial digital cameras. The machine’s low energy consumption means it can operate independently for two months at depths of up to 6,000 metres. Thanks to its low consumption batteries, the machine can monitor earth tremors using passive seismic techniques for long continuous periods in the ocean depths. Source: ScienceDaily

11/14/2008 - Demand, Pay Look Good for Rig Workers

Multinational oil companies are grappling with a shortage of specialized labor for offshore rigs that promises to get worse. Drillers plan to erect 180 new offshore rigs over the next three years—adding to the current total of 640 worldwide. Every new offshore drilling operation requires an average of 200 workers. Salaries for the most sought-after categories of oil workers have risen about a third over the past four years. An experienced roughneck can make $100,000 a year, and top white-collar engineers can make as much as $500,000 a year, industry analysts and officials said. Source: Rigzone

11/13/2008 - 18.9% of GOM Oil Production Still Shut In

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) reports that personnel are still evacuated from 62 production platforms in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico following Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. No rigs in the Gulf are evacuated. From operator's reports, MMS estimates that around 18.9 percent of the oil production and 27.9 percent of the natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are shut-in. Before the hurricane, oil production in the U.S. Gulf was around 1.3 million b/d, while gas production was between 7 to 7.4 Bcf/d.

11/12/2008 - Supreme Court Rules for Navy

The Supreme Court on Wednesday lifted sanctions placed on the Navy over its underwater sonar testing, a setback for environmental groups that claimed the warfare technology was harming whales and other marine mammals. At issue in the 5-4 ruling was whether the Navy's need to conduct exercises to protect the country from enemy submarines outweighed concerns raised by environmental groups. Source: CNN

11/12/2008 - Webinar, Symposium to Focus on DOE Funding

The Department of Defense, through the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP), is seeking to fund environmental research and development efforts. Details will be posted in the E-News that is mailed to MTS members near the beginning of each month. In the meain time, you can attend a webinar "SERDP Funding Opportunities" hosted through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Technology Innovation Program on November 20 at 2:30 p.m. EST. To learn more and to register, visit www.clu-in.org/conf/tio/serdpfunding. Also, SERDP will hold a "Partners in Environmental Technology Technical Symposium & Workshop" on December 2–4 in Washington, D.C., where SERDP’s Executive Director Dr. Jeffrey Marqusee will present a Funding Opportunities session on December 4, 2008, 12:15–12:45 p.m. EST. To learn more and to register, visit www.serdp-estcp.org/symposium.

11/11/2008 - New Approach to Tsunami Early-Warning System

The newly implemented Tsunami Early Warning System for the Indian Ocean, GITEWS, goes into operation today and with this, the system enters its final phase of optimisation. As foreseen, the system was officially handed over to the BMKG (Meteorological, Climatology and Geophysical Agency of Indonesia) by the President of Indonesia, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, slightly less than four years after the catastrophe of 2004. This system differs from previous Tsunami Warning Systems through new scientific procedures and technologies. Source: Science Daily

11/11/2008 - California Boasts First Artificial Kelp Reef

State and utility officials applauded the completion yesterday of the world's first artificial kelp reef, which they say will provide a thriving habitat for fish and marine organisms for decades. Spread over two miles south of San Clemente Pier, the pioneering reef was undertaken by Southern California Edison to make up for environmental damage caused by the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. Source: SanDiego Union-Tribune

11/10/2008 - Worst Accident Since Kursk Claims 20 Russian Sailors

The works accidient to hit Russia's navy since the Kursk submarine explosion eight years ago struck last weekend, claiming 20 victims on board the Nerpa nuclear sub. The 20 died from asphyxiation when the fire extinguishing system was set off unexpectedly, releasing toxic freon gas -- used as a fire suppressant -- into the submarine. A former submarine officer said that many died because they lacked adquuate training in how to respond in a fire drill. The Kursk accident claimed 118 lives. Source: Swiss.info.ch

11/10/2008 - Ocean Drilling Helps Understand Monsoons

A study using geochemical data from an Ocean Drilling Project sediment core extracted from the seafloor of the South China Sea suggests that variations in monsoon climate over longer time scales also influenced the evolution of the world's highest mountain chain, the Himalaya. The study is reported in the British journal Nature Geoscience. "Sediments in this core were eroded from the drainage area of the Pearl River system in China, and their chemistry records the relative intensity through time of chemical weathering in an area that received the bulk of its precipitation from East Asian monsoon storms," explains Peter Clift, lead author of the study and a professor of geology and petroleum geology at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. Source: Science Centric

11/09/2008 - Brennan Replaces Lautenbacher

William J. Brennan, Ph.D., has become the acting under secretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere and acting administrator of NOAA. Brennan, currently assistant secretary and deputy administrator, succeeds retired Navy Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher Jr., who resigned to return to private life after guiding NOAA for the past seven years. Lautenbacher is a member of MTS. Previously, Brennan served as NOAA's deputy assistant secretary of commerce for international affairs and director of the U.S. Climate Change Science Program. Brennan holds a B.S. degree in marine biology, a M.A. degree in marine policy and a Ph.D. in ecology and environmental sciences.

11/08/2008 - Republican Senators Kill Marine Sanctuary Plans

President Bush's proposal to create a string of marine sanctuaries in the Gulf of Mexico, known as the "Islands in the Stream," has died at least for now after Republican senators opposed it, a sanctuary official said. In April, Sen. David Vitter, R-La., and Alabama's two Republican senators, Richard Shelby and Jeff Sessions, sent a letter to the White House expressing their "strong objections" to the plan. Vitter said in a statement that his concern was that the sanctuaries would "have held potentially grave consequences for the Gulf Coast's fishing and energy interests." Source: Associated Press

11/08/2008 - NOAA-N Prime Delivered for Launch

The NOAA-N Prime spacecraft, a Polar Operational Environmental Satellite (POES), has been delivered to Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., in preparation for a February 4, 2009 launch. Built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, the NOAA-N Prime is the latest in the Advanced TIROS-N satellite series. A constellation consists of two polar-orbiting satellites circling the planet in nearly north-south orbits. As the Earth rotates, the entire globe, one swath at a time rolls into view of the satellites' instruments. The instruments are continually sensing the entire depth of the atmosphere and report ing environmental measurements.

11/07/2008 - Study: Sunlight is Key to Ice Sheets' Influence on Ocean Currents

A study reported in the October 6 issue of Nature disputes a longstanding picture of how ice sheets influence ocean circulation during glacial periods. The distribution of sunlight, rather than the size of North American ice sheets, is the key variable in changes in the North Atlantic deep-water formation during the last four glacial cycles, according to the article. The new study goes back 425,000 years, according to Lorraine Lisiecki, first author and assistant professor in the Department of Earth Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara.
Lisiecki and her co-authors studied 24 separate locations in the Atlantic by analyzing information from ocean sediment cores. By observing the properties of the shells of tiny marine organisms, called foraminifera, found in these cores, they were able to deduce information about the North Atlantic deep water formation. Scientists can discern historical ocean temperature and circulation patterns through the analysis of the chemical composition of these marine animals.

11/06/2008 - MMS Names New GOM Deputy Supervisor

The U.S. Minerals Management Service has appointed New Orleans District Manager Troy Trosclair as the MMS Gulf of Mexico region's new deputy regional supervisor for district operations and field operations. Trosclair will supervise the Gulf of Mexico region's five district offices and oversee field operations functions such as safety inspections, accident investigations and drilling permits. Source: EnergyCurrent

11/06/2008 - Oil Services, Drillers Earnings Up

U.S. oilfield services and drilling contractors continued to post higher quarterly profits on strong oil and gas prices, offsetting costs from the active hurricane season. The companies benefited from oil prices that reached a peak in July and averaged more than $118 a barrel in the third quarter, about 57 percent higher than a year. Source: Reuters

11/05/2008 - Royal Society Launches Climate Geoengineering Study

The U.K. Royal Society has announced plans to study which planetary-scale geo-engineering techniques might play a practical role in stemming the worst impacts of climate change. Geo-engineering includes everything from placing mirrors in space that reflect sunlight from the Earth to seeding the oceans with iron to encourage the growth of algae that can soak up atmospheric carbon dioxide. The Royal Society study will look at which techniques might be feasible to carry out and what their impacts or unintended consequences might be on society. Source: The Royal Society

11/03/2008 - Deep Diver Jacques Piccard Dies

Jacques Piccard, the scientist who co-invented the bathyscaphe with his father, died November 1 in Lake Geneva, Switzerland. He was 86. Piccard was accompanied by MTS member Don Walsh, then of the U.S. Navy, on January 23, 1960, when they took the batheyscaphe, named the Trieste, nearly seven miles to the bottom of the Challenger Deep in the Pacirfic's Marianas Trench. It remains the deepest dive ever carried out. Piccard also built four mid-depth submarines, mesoscaphes, including the first tourist submarine. In the 1970s Piccard formed the Foundation for the Study and Preservation of Seas and Lakes and began warning about the dangers of pollution and overfishing. He continued to develop and build submersibles. He made his last dive aged 82. Source: Telegraph.co.uk

11/01/2008 - Ocean Leadership Funded for OOI Cooperative Agreement

The Consortium for Ocean Leadership has received $7.86M of supplemental funding to the Ocean Observatories Initiative cooperative agreement to cover activities over the period of performance October 1, 2008–June 30, 2009. This will allow the integrated team at the Project Office and the Implementing Organizations to complete Final Design Review (FDR) and maintain readiness for the project’s construction start, now anticipated to be July 2010. The OOI project team is preparing for the two-part FDR, held by the National Science Foundation, with two external review panels. The objective of this review is to gain confidence in a risk-adjusted cost that defines the budgetary resources and schedule needed to accomplish the requested scope. While the technical baseline has not changed fundamentally since Preliminary Design Review (PDR) in December 2007, the design now has more clarity in specific subsystems and firmer cost estimates from concentrating engineering efforts in high-risk areas. Subsequent to the FDR, the OOI will be considered by several review bodies internal to NSF before it is forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget for inclusion in the FY2010 budget request to Congress.

10/31/2008 - Not So Rosy Picture: Possible Oil Price Rebound and Exxon's Dilemma

The slump in oil prices has spread relief among consumers and fuel-reliant industries, but also is squeezing the companies who could invest in new sources of oil—spurring concerns that prices will prompt them to shelve investments. Industry executives warn that could mean the world will face a dramatic ramping up of prices as soon as the global economy, and demand, begins to rebound. (Source: Rigzone) In the meantime, Exxon Mobil raked in a $14.8 billion profit in the third quarter, a new record for a United States corporation. It must now consider buying a rival at home to protect itself from a worsening environment toward Big Oil abroad. With oil now trading at around $65 a barrel, it will become harder to obscure the industry’s biggest challenge: declining reserves and increasingly inhospitable host nations. Source: New York Times

10/30/2008 - Despite Low Oil Prices, Subsea Work in Demand

Even though oil prices have declined considerably over the last several months and currently hover around $60 per barrel, subsea installation activity continues to do well. Should the oil price continue to plummet, however, subsea projects will suffer. To date, 321 subsea installation projects are known to be underway between now through 2012 and beyond, according to data compiled by ODS-Petrodata for its online Offshore Construction Locator market intelligence system. Deepwater activity continues to grow in the subsea realm around the world, in particular in West Africa. Northwest Europe is the busiest region for subsea installation, followed by West Africa, Latin America and the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Source: EnergyCurrent

10/28/2008 - MMS Nets $537 in RIK Sale

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) has brought in around $537 million in a Gulf of Mexico Royalty in Kind (RIK) gas sale. Over 76 Bcf of natural gas was sold to six companies under five or 12-month contracts, with delivery scheduled to begin November 1. Winning bidders on the natural gas were ConocoPhillips, Shell Energy North America, United Energy Trading, J.P. Morgan Chase, Williams Gas Marketing Co. and National Energy and Trade. Gas sold in the RIK sale is from royalties taken "in kind" as product, rather than as cash royalties, from producers in the Gulf of Mexico. MMS then sells the natural gas on the open marketplace. Source: EnergyCurrents

10/27/2008 - Climate Change's Effects on Lakes Differ in Warmer and Colder Regions

Climate change will have different effects on lakes in warmer and colder regions of the globe. This is the conclusion reached by Japanese and German researchers following studies of very deep caldera lakes in Japan. Scientists from Hokkaido University, the Hokkaido Institute of Environmental Sciences, Kagoshima University and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) compared current measurements with measurements taken 70 years ago. This confirmed a rise in temperatures in the deep water layers of lakes in the south of Japan, while the deep water temperatures of lakes in the north remained the same. Source: Underwater Times

10/27/2008 - EU Renewables: 20% by 2020

The UK House of Lords Select Committee on European Union has published a review of the UK's progress towards its proposed target for energy from renewable sources of 15%, to meet the overall EU renewable energy target of 20%. The report outlines a number of the problems associated with increasing renewables and puts forward some possible policy options. Source: UK Parliment

10/24/2008 - 72 GOM Platforms Still Shut In

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) reports that personnel are still evacuated from a total of 72 production platforms in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, following Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. This is equivalent to 10.4 percent of the 694 manned platforms in the area. From operator's reports, MMS estimates that around 32.3 percent of the oil production and 34.5 percent of the natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is shut-in. Source: EnergyCurrent

10/21/2008 - Renewables Worried About Incentives

Shares of alternative energy companies have fallen even more sharply than the rest of the stock market in recent months. The struggles of financial institutions are raising fears that investment capital for big renewable energy projects is likely to get tighter. Advocates are concerned that if the prices for oil and gas keep falling, the incentive for utilities and consumers to buy expensive renewable energy will shrink. Source: New York Times

10/20/2008 - Series of Giant Offshore Wind Farms Planned for Scotland

Scotland has taken a major step towards becoming a green energy powerhouse after more than a dozen companies applied to build a series of giant offshore windfarms. The Crown Estate, the agency which owns the British seabed out to the 12-mile territorial limit, has revealed that 14 private development consortiums are bidding to build the farms in 23 locations off the east and west coasts. Each farm is expected to have scores of 1,000-ton turbines, up to 300 feet high, anchored to the seabed and spread over tens of square miles. Source: Scotland on Sunday 

10/20/2008 - Cuba Estimates Offshore Oil Reserves of 20 Billion Barrels

Cuban oil officials have said that the country may have over 20 million barrels of recoverable oil in its offshore fields in the Gulf of Mexico, more than twice the estimates of the U.S. Geological Survey. Rafael Tenreyro Perez, exploration manager for Cuban oil company Cupet, said that the country hopes to drill its first production wells in mid-2009. Source: EnergyCurrent

10/17/2008 - Positive Outlook Amid Plunging Prices

Despite the U.S. commodity market's financial slump, with both prices and spirits sunk to all-time lows, the petroleum industry is forging ahead to build on its production and operational position to fulfill worldwide energy needs. In fact, the energy industry has helped to buoy the economy throughout recent market meltdowns and has provided its own saving grace in the midst of a sluggish national job sector. Source: Rigzone

10/15/2008 - Lautenbacher to Resign from NOAA

Retired Navy Vice Admiral Conrad Lautenbacher, Jr., undersecretary of commerce for oceans and atmosphere, announced his resignation today. His last day on the job is Oct. 31. Lautenbacher has been a member of MTS since 2003. The announcement on the NOAA Web site doesn’t say why Lautenbacher is stepping down from his post. But Anson Franklin, a NOAA spokesman, said the resignation wasn't unexpected. "I don’t think it's been a surprise to anybody," Franklinsaid. "He's been here for almost seven years, which is a lifetime for political appointees. He's made it clear for a year or so that he'd probably depart before the end of the administration and ended up staying on. He feels he's completed the major projects he was working on and was just ready to move on." Under Lautenbacher’s leadership, NOAA was instrumental in the creation of the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument, the second largest area in the world dedicated to marine preservation. Lautenbacher contributed to the President’s landmark Ocean Initiative and worked with Congress to pass the Magnuson-Stevens Act reauthorization, which requires overfishing end by 2011.

10/11/2008 - Hundreds of Marine Species Discovered

Hundreds of new marine species and previously uncharted undersea mountains and canyons have been discovered in the depths of the Southern Ocean, Australian scientists said Wednesday. A total of 274 species of fish, ancient corals, molluscs, crustaceans and sponges new to science were found in icy waters up to 3,000 meters (9,800 feet) deep among extinct volcanoes, they said. The scientists mapped undersea mountains up to 500 metres high and canyons larger than the Grand Canyon for the first time, the government's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation said. Source: AFP

10/10/2008 - Australians Discover 274 Marine Species

A team of Australian scientists has discovered hundreds of new marine species and dozens of undersea mountains, in a project to monitor the Commonwealth Marine Reserve Network off southern Tasmania. The findings were made during surveys of the Tasman Fracture and Huon Commonwealth Marine Reserves, about 100 nautical miles off the coast of southern Tasmania. In total, 274 species new to science were brought to the surface and analysed, along with 86 species previously unknown in Australian waters and 242 previously studied species. The sophisticated sonar equipment onboard also discovered 80 previously unknown seamounts, raising the total in the region to at least 144, which is easily the highest concentration in Australian waters. Source: CSIRO

10/10/2008 - Argentinians Begin South Atlantic Search for Oil

Argentine president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner officially marked on Monday the beginning of operations of a South Atlantic oil rig, the first to be fully financed by Argentine government and private investors. Mercopress reported that the Ocean Scepter, specially built in Houston arrived early September and is currently involved in exploratory operations in the San Jorge Gulf, 45 kilometers off shore Comodorio Rivadavia, an undertaking financed by Argentina's Energy Corporation, Enarse, YPF, which is now in private Argentine hands, and Sipetrol, Chile's overseas branch of its government owned oil corporation Enap. Source: Petroleumworld.com

10/09/2008 - U.S. Supreme Court Considers Navy Sonar Case

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday about whether to overturn a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco that imposed limites on the Navy's sonar exercises, saying either that national security concerns trumped environmental ones or that judges are not competent to weigh competing interestes. According to an article in the New York Times, Lisa Heinzerling, a law professor at Georgetown, said the environmental group that sued under the National Environmental Policy Act to stop the sonar faced long odds . The Supreme Court has heard 15 cases under the act, she said, and the plaintiffs have lost all 15.

10/09/2008 - MMS Awards Contract to Study Alternative Energy on OCS

The U.S. Minerals Management Service has awarded a two-year, US$443,000 contract to Massachusetts-based consulting firm Eastern Research Group (ERG). ERG will conduct a study focusing on energy markets and infrastructure needs related to alternative energy development on the Outer Continental Shelf. The findings of the study will contribute to the socioeconomic analyses for environmental assessments and other documents related to alternative energy development on the OCS. The study's final report is expected in late 2010. Source: EnergyCurrent

10/06/2008 - Warming, CO2, Ocean Currents Tightly Linked

In a paper published today in the journal Science, researchers presented new data from their analysis of ice core samples and ocean deposits dating as far back as 90,000 years ago and suggest that warming, carbon dioxide levels and ocean currents are tightly inter-related. These findings provide scientists with more data and insights into how these phenomena were connected in the past and may lead to a better understanding of future climate trends. Source: Science

10/06/2008 - Oil-Munching Microbes Produce Natural Gas

Thousands of feet below the bottom of the sea, off the shores of Santa Barbara, Calif., single-celled organisms are busy feasting on oil. Until now, nobody knew how many oily compounds were being devoured by the microscopic creatures, but new research led by David Valentine of University of California at Santa Barbara ( UCSB ) and Chris Reddy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution ( WHOI ) in Massachusetts has shed new light on just how extensive their diet can be. The researchers found that there may be one other byproduct being produced by all of this munching on oil—natural gas. “They’re eating the oil, and probably making natural gas out of it,” said Valentine. “It’s actually a whole consortium of organisms — some that are eating the oil and producing intermediate products, and then those intermediate products are converted by another group to natural gas.”

10/04/2008 - New Sub Rescue System Launched

The Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System's (SRDRS) Rescue Capable System replaced the Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV) Mystic as the U.S. Navy's deep-submergence submarine rescue asset on Sept. 30. Mystic and the DSRV program began deactivation on October 1. SRDRS is a rapidly deployable rescue asset that can be delivered by air or ground, installed on pre-screened military or commercial vessels of opportunity via a ship interface template, and mated to a distressed submarine within a 72-hour time to first rescue period. SRDRS will be based out of San Diego, and operated by the Navy's Deep Submergence Unit.

10/03/2008 - Cash-Rich Oil Firms Snap Up Assets

The turmoil on Wall Street is reshaping the U.S. oil industry, forcing debt-laden smaller producers to sell assets and creating opportunities for larger, cash-rich companies that until recently had been criticized by investors for spending too conservatively. Wall Street rewarded companies that spent aggressively on finding and drilling new wells, while companies that spent conservatively and built up cash saw their stock go up far less. The shift has led to a scramble for cash just when the global financial crisis has made it hardest to come by. Source: Rigzone

10/02/2008 - Norway Doubles Renewable Fund

Norway will double a state fund promoting investments in renewable energy to NOK 20 billion (US$3.43 billion) by next year, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday. "Over the last three years my government has doubled the funding for investments in this area. We will continue along this path, ensuring that Norway remains among the top international producers of renewable energy." "Next year we will double the capital in the Fund for Renewable Energy from NOK 10 billion (US$1.7 billion) to NOK 20 billion," he said in a speech to a conference at Lillestroem, near Oslo. Source: EnergyCurrent

10/01/2008 - GOM Oil Production Still More Than Half Shut-In

The U.S. Minerals Management Service (MMS) reports that 57.1 percent of the oil production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is still shut-in. This figure has risen from Monday because of operator's errors in reporting production on Sept. 29. Around 45.7 percent of natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf is still shut-in. Before Hurricanes Ike and Gustav, production from the Gulf of Mexico was around 1.3 million b/d of oil and 7.0 Bcf/d of natural gas. MMS reports that 111 production platforms of the 694 manned platforms in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are still evacuated. Only one of the 116 rigs active in the U.S. Gulf is evacuated at the moment. This rig is in the Lafayette district.

09/30/2008 - Gas Company Punished for Polluting Outer Continental Shelf

A federal judge placed a California-based natural gas company on probation for five years and ordered it to pay a $450,000 criminal fine after it pleaded guilty to releasing pollutants along the Outer Continental Shelf. Pacific Operators Offshore Inc. pleaded guilty to one count of violating the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, for using a faulty natural gas line that stretched along the ocean floor from the company's plant in La Conchita, Calif., to one of its ocean drilling platforms. Source: Washington Post.com

09/29/2008 - North Sea Workers Loose Tax Status

Workers on North Sea dive vessels and other vessels may no longer qualify for seafaring income tax concessions, following a ruling by UK Revenue and Customs officials. Vessels working in construction and construction support, well service and dive support will all be affected; however, pipe laying barges will continue to be considered a ship if they are involved solely in laying pipes. Other vessels will be considered on an individual basis. The tax liability has been back-dated to April 2007. Unions have criticised the move, but the officials said it had a duty to ensure the law is applied correctly. Source: BBC News

09/29/2008 - Seamount to Be Added to Monterey Bay Sanctuary

The Monterey Bay marine sanctuary will expand by 585 square nautical miles, safeguarding one of the largest seamounts in U.S. waters. The senctuary is off the California's Central Coast. Once it becomes part of the sanctuary, the seamount will be permanently off limits to offshore oil drilling and mining, and protected from dumping. This would be the first significant boundary expansion of an existing national marine sanctuary under the Bush administration. The White House Council on Environmental Quality has proposed protections for waters around U.S.-owned islands and atolls in the central and South Pacific, including Palmyra and Rose atolls, and the northern portion of the Mariana Trench. Source: Los Angeles Times

09/26/2008 - NMSF: Deny Bieville LNG License

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has recommended that the U.S. Coast Guard deny TORP Terminal LP's application to build and operate the proposed Bienville liquefied natural gas terminal in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. NMFS outlined its conclusion in a letter to the USCG after reviewing the project's final environmental impact statement. NFMS said the proposed project poses a threat to marine life in the area. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/25/2008 - World's First Commercial Wave Farm Is on the Grid

The world's first commercial power plant converting the energy of sea waves into electricity started working off Portugal's coast on Tuesday in a project that may be increased nearly tenfold over the next few years. Three articulated steel "sea-snakes" (made by Pelamis) moored to the seabed 3 miles off Portugal's northern coast, each about the length of a nuclear submarine, can generate a total of 2.25 MW, enough to supply 1,500 households with electricity. "It's logged into the national grid, which makes it the world's first commercial wave power project," said Anthony Kennaway, a spokesman for Babcock and Brown investment firm, which runs the Agucadoura project in northern Portugal. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/24/2008 - Subsea ROV Operators to See Substational Growth

Oil and gas industry expenditure on subsea work-class remotely operated vehicle operations is likely to total $1.6 billion in 2008, and the market is set to reach $2.4 billion by 2012. This is one of the findings of a new market study “The World ROV Report 2008-12” published by energy analysts Douglas-Westwood. Announcing the launch of the report, Lucy Miller, lead analyst commented, “Both offshore utilization and ROV dayrates have increased dramatically over the past five years and stand at an all time high. “In the past year, ROV dayrates for Africa, Middle East and the Caspian have increased by 42 percent, overtaking Norway, which was until recently the most expensive region. Also, shortages of skilled operators have caused personnel dayrates to grow by 47-50 oercent in those regions. Source: SubSea World

09/23/2008 - GOM Oil and Gas Continue Recovery

Offshore oil and gas operators in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are continuing to board platforms and rigs and restore production following Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. The U.S. Minerals Management Service reports that personnel are still evacuated from 225 production platforms and seven rigs operating in the U.S. Gulf. Around 76.6 percent of the oil production and 65.5 percent of the natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf is still shut-in. All but one of Anadarko's operated facilities in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico are now operational. Production has been fully restored at the Independence Hub, Boomvang, Nansen and Neptune facilities. Oil production has been restored at the Marco Polo and Gunnison platforms. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/22/2008 - DOE to Fund Water Power Projects

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the selection of 14 research teams who will receive up to $7.3 million for advanced water power projects. The projects will advance commercial viability, cost-competitiveness, and market acceptance of new technologies that can harness renewable energy from oceans and rivers. Awards will be made in three topic areas: industry-led partnerships, market penetration of advanced water power technologies, development of National Marine Renewable Energy Centers. Among the the 14 is MTS member Science Applications International Corporation. Source: Sustainable Business.com

09/19/2008 - Presidential Candidates Respond to Ocean-Issue Questions

The organization ScienceDebate2008 sent a list of 14 questions to both Senator Barak Obama and Senator John McCain to gather information on how each candidate sees issues of science and technology and to find what actions they are likely to take.  To view the questions and the candidates responses, visit ScienceDebate2008 and scroll down the homepage.

09/18/2008 - Study: Catch Shares May Be Answer to Collapsing Fish Stocks

A study published in the September 19 issue of Science shows that an innovative yet contentious fisheries management strategy called "catch shares" can reverse fisheries collapse. Where traditional "open access" fisheries have converted to catch shares, both fishermen and the oceans have benefited.

UC Santa Barbara scientists Christopher Costello and Steven Gaines are two of the co-authors of this groundbreaking study, which was funded by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. Costello, the lead author, is an economist at the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at UCSB. Gaines is director of UCSB's Marine Science Institute. John Lynham, assistant professor at the University of Hawaii, is the third author.

"Our data, from over 11,000 fisheries worldwide, suggest that catch shares may be a powerful tool to overcome the widespread decline in global fisheries," Costello says.

Catch shares are common in New Zealand, Australia, Iceland, and increasingly the United States and Canada. They guarantee each shareholder a fixed portion of a fishery's total allowable catch, which is set each year by scientists. Much like stock shares in a corporation, these shares can be bought and sold. Each share becomes more valuable when the fish population—and thus the total allowable catch—increases. With catch shares, every shareholder has a financial stake in the long-term health of the fishery.

The results of the study are striking: While nearly a third of open-access fisheries have collapsed, the number is only half that for fisheries managed under catch share systems. Furthermore, the authors show that catch shares reverse the overall downward trajectory for fisheries worldwide, and that this beneficial effect strengthens over time.

"Under open access, you have a free-for-all race-to-fish, which ultimately leads to collapse," says Costello. "But when you allocate shares of the catch, then there is an incentive to protect the stockówhich reduces collapse. We saw this across the globe. It's human nature."

The results of this study are certain to have wide-ranging implications as more fisheries in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and elsewhere consider switching to catch shares systems. It is particularly timely for the West Coast of the United States, where the groundfish fishery—which encompasses more than 80 species including sole, rockfish (snapper), hake, and sablefish (Alaskan black cod)—is likely to transition to catch shares. This paper provides the first global evidence that catch shares lead to better biological outcomes, and contributes an important scientific basis to the discussions. The Pacific Fisheries Management Council, which manages the groundfish fishery on the West Coast, will make their final decision during the week of November 2, 2008.

Gaines, Costello, and Lynham say they are extremely grateful for the support of Allen and his foundation. Without their generous support, this important project couldn't have happened, they say.

"Mr. Allen is passionate about the ocean," Gaines says. "The global declines in ocean health have prompted him and his foundation to support the search for innovative solutions using market-based approaches."

Peter Berliner, program director for the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, says "the Foundation was looking for a way to improve and sustain the health of the oceans. UCSB provided the expertise and knowledge to demonstrate a way of helping our oceans and preserving the economic viability of an industry."

This new study offers hope that fisheries can resist the widespread global collapse projected two years ago by Boris Worm of Dalhousie University, Halifax and colleagues. In fact, the current work uses the same dataset that Worm et al. based their projection on a global database of fisheries from the Sea Around Us Project that spans the years 1950-2003. The authors of the present study were motivated by that paper to investigate possible solutions. Their analysis suggests that we already have the tools to reverse the current global fisheries crisis.

"Previous papers, including my own, have relied on small samples from the world's fisheries. The great thing about this paper is they have made an attempt to find all the fisheries in the world that have used dedicated access and evaluate the consequences," says Ray Hilborn, a leading fisheries scientist at the University of Washington who was not involved in the study. "The field has now moved beyond listing failures in fisheries. Ecology and economics do not need to collide; win-win solutions have been found."

While the current study focuses on Individual Transferable Quotas (ITQs), which are a type of catch share, Costello and his co-authors note that to maximize benefits, catch shares must be tailored to the ecological, economic, and social characteristics of a fishery.

If designed properly, catch share programs can reduce bycatch ? the unintentional harvest of threatened or undesirable species—and protect the ecosystem in the process. By imposing individual limits on bycatch, as well as on desirable species, catch shares create incentives to develop environmentally beneficial new technologies, such as more selective, less damaging fishing gear.

"The difference is comparable to renting an apartment versus the house you own," says Costello. "If you own something, you take care of it; you protect your investment or else it loses value. But there's no incentive for stewardship when you don't own the rights to it."

The Alaskan halibut fishery is a prime example of success. In 1995, when the fishery converted to ITQs, the total season had dwindled from about four months down to just two or three days. These dangerous sprints resulted in boats with their holds crammed full of frozen fish; by the time the overloaded processing facilities could accommodate them, quality had suffered. Today, the season lasts nearly eight months. Because boats now haul in fresh, undamaged fish in manageable quantities, the per-pound price has increased significantly.

"Halibut fishermen were barely squeaking by ? but now the fishery is insanely profitable," says Gaines.

The authors emphasize that for all their strengths, catch shares are not a panacea. Strategies vary widely, and must be carefully designed and continually fine-tuned to meet the goals of the ecosystems, economies and societies they are meant to serve. Controls such as consolidation caps, which prevent any one entity from owning too much of a given fishery, and community-owned quotas have worked in some cases to help maintain vibrant ports and fisheries. Some design features, however, such as how shares are allocated between individuals and processors, can be contentious, as in the Alaskan king crab fishery and elsewhere.

"One of the big challenges in catch shares is how you allocate the shares,"
Gaines explains. "But this is not a scientific question; it's a value judgment on the part of local communities and their governments."

Overall, the current study scientifically affirms what some fishermen and fisheries managers have long suspected based on anecdotal evidence and firsthand observation.

"Up until now, it's been an article of faith. It's pleasing to see that the data really does show these trends," says Jeremy Prince, a fisheries scientist and former fisherman from Australia who is a leader in transitioning fisheries to catch shares.

"This study gives us a solution to work with in fighting the global fishery crisis," says Boris Worm, who was not involved in the research. "There are fisheries which are doing well because of rights-based management. It's the silver lining that we have been looking for. Now we need to implement these solutions more widely."

Catch shares are not a one-size-fits-all solution. However, the current study demonstrates that ownership can be a powerful ally in the effort to reverse fisheries decline, especially when deployed with complementary management strategies. With proper design, careful monitoring, and real-time adaptation to changing environmental conditions, catch shares can help ensure that the world will enjoy plentiful seafood for years to come.

09/18/2008 - U.S. House Passes Energy Bill, Bush Threatens Veto

The U.S. House of Representatives has passed the Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer protection Act, which gives states the option to allow drilling between 50 to 100 miles offshore. Areas over 100 miles from the coast would be completely open to oil exploration and drilling. Among other thinngs, the bill also offers tax credits for renewable energy which would be funded by repealing tax breaks for the oil and gas industry. Lawmakers in the Senate are preparing to introduce their own energy legislation to address offshore drilling expansion later in the week. However, the White House has already indicated that they are unhappy with the bill, and the President would veto it. The White House statement specifically named tax increases on energy companies, renewable power mandates that ignore regional differences, drawing down oil in the Strategic Reserve, provisions that force some deepwater oil and gas lease holders to renegotiate the terms of their leases, and expansion of wage requirements as unacceptable elements of the legislation. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/17/2008 - Ike Destroys 28 Platforms, 3 Jackups

The U.S. Minerals Management Service reports that 28 of the 3,800 offshore oil and gas production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico were destroyed by Hurricane Ike, with several more platforms significantly damaged. The destroyed platforms produced around 11,000 b/d of oil and 82 MMcf/d of natural gas. Twenty four of the platforms produced less than 1,000 b/d of oil, while four produced between 1,000 to 5,000 barrels. Three jackup rigs were destroyed, and one jackup received extensive damage. Lost jackups include Rowan Anchorage, Pride Wyoming and ENSCO 74. Two rigs reported drifting have been secured by tugs. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/17/2008 - Study: Oil Spills in Canada Six Times Higher Than Predicted

The number of small spills reported by the energy companies that operate Canada's offshore oil and gas rigs has far exceeded their original predictions, according to a new study published Monday in the Journal of Environmental Assessment, Policy and Management. The study says that operators of the Terra Nova project off Newfoundland, for example, had originally predicted 5.3 spills of less than 50 barrels per spill during the 15-year lifespan of the project. However, Terra Nova has had 34 spills of that size since development started in 1999—more than six times higher than Petro-Canada had anticipated in its environmental assessment. John Downton, a spokesman for Petro-Canada in St. John's, N.L., said he couldn't comment on the study because the company needed more time to examine its methodology. The study also found that the Sable Offshore Energy Project off Nova Scotia reported 57 small spills by 2004—again, a rate more than six times higher than predicted. Source: Canadian Press

09/16/2008 - Arctic Sea Ice Sinks to Lowest Level Ever

Arctic sea ice may well have reached its lowest volumes ever, as summer ice coverage of the Arctic Sea looks set to be close to last year’s record lows, with thinner ice overall. Final figures on minimum ice coverage for 2008 are expected in a matter of days, but they are already flirting with last year’s record low of 1.59 million square miles, or 4.13 million square kilometres. Source: Science Daily

09/16/2008 - Two Sunken Ships Found off Ukraine

The U.S. Military Sealift Command oceanographic survey ship USNS Pathfinder (T-AGS 60) identified two sunken vessels during a joint, at-sea capabilities demonstration in Ukrainian territorial waters. German coastal submarine U-18 was the first target the oceanographers identified using underwater video on a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). The second ship is believed to be RUS Prut, a Russian minelayer that sank in 1914 during WWI. The ship's civilian oceanographers used side-scan sonar, multi-beam sonar and ROVs to locate the vessels. "It was interesting using all of the state-of-the-art equipment," said Dr. Serge A. Gulyar, Head of Underwater Physiology Department at the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, who participated in the search. "As a physiologist, it was nice learning about all the technical parts of the underwater exploration."

09/15/2008 - Democrats Backing Off Drilling Ban

Congressional Democrats, balancing political reality against a policy they have long opposed, are on the cusp of approving legislation that would open the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to oil drilling as close as 50 miles offshore. Votes are scheduled this week in the House and Senate. Led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Democrates are offering a mix of proposals that would allow drilling, with the waters off Massachusetts, Virginia and Georgia most likely to be the first affected. Source: Washington Post

09/14/2008 - Ike Sets Two Rigs Adrift

The Minerals Management Service has two confirmed reports of drilling rigs adrift in the central Gulf of Mexico after the passage of Hurricane Ike. The MMS, industry and the U.S. Coast Guard are working together to monitor the paths of the two rigs. MMS has determined through a pre-hurricane season risk analysis that there is minimal infrastructure in the areas surrounding these two rigs. The agency did not immediately identify the rigs by name. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/12/2008 - French Film Features Oceans

A new film called Oceans, produced by the French production company Galatee Films, was highlighted in the leading French daily newspaper Le Monde. The film is directed by Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzaud and features images of oceans all around the world. This film has partnered with the Census of Marine Life to provide scientific information for the film. The world premiere is expected to be in Paris in November 2009. Links to the original French articles in the August 28th edition can be found at phe.rockefeller.edu/news.

09/12/2008 - Production Drops on Norwegian Shelf

A significant drop in oil production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf has been seen in the last month. Preliminary production figures for August show an average daily production of about 1.950 million barrels of oil on the Norwegian Continental Shelf. The average daily production was about 2.227 million barrels of oil in July. During that month, production from Norne, Urd and Snøhvit fields have been partly closed due to planned maintenance in July. Source: EnergyCurrent

09/11/2008 - Ike Heads for Texas Coast

Forecasters said Hurricane Ike could slam into the Texas coast —south of Galveston—as a powerful Category 4 storm late Friday or early Saturday. According to the Minerals Management Service, as of Wednesday, personnel have been evacuated from a total of 452 production platforms, equivalent to 63.0 % of the 717 manned platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Personnel from 81 rigs have also been evacuated; this is equivalent to 66.9 % of the 121 rigs currently operating in the Gulf.

09/11/2008 - MMS Hit By Sex, Graft Scandal

Management Service, which collects oil and gas royalties, has been caught up in a wide-ranging ethics scandal—including allegations of financial self-dealing, accepting gifts from energy companies, cocaine use and sexual misconduct. The department’s inspector general, Earl E. Devaney, found wrongdoing by a dozen current and former employees of the Minerals Management Service. Source: New York Times

09/10/2008 - Hurricane Ike Enters GOM

Hurricane Ike is expected to enter the Gulf of Mexico in a matter of hours. The storm is currently a Category 1 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of nearly 75 miles per hour and higher gusts, but is expected to strengthen again once it enters the Gulf. The Minerals Management Service reports that personnel have been evacuated from 167 platforms and 44 rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. Around 77.5 percent of oil production and 64.8 percent of natural gas production in the region has been shut-in. These numbers are unlikely to rise significantly until the threat of Hurricane Ike has passed. Source: EnergyCurrents

09/10/2008 - Offshore Rig Demand Is Unabated

A period of stability is being enjoyed by the worldwide rig fleet, and even the recent drop in oil price to around the $100 mark is unlikely to shake up demand. Figures compiled for ODS-Petrodata's monthly World Rig Forecast - Short Term Trends report show that in September, a total of 597 of a supply of 638 semisubmersibles, jackups and drillships were contracted, putting worldwide offshore rig utilization at 93.57 percent. Source: EnergyCurrents

09/09/2008 - Offshore Drilling to Dominate Congress

Offshore drilling is expected to dominate U.S. congressional debate in the coming weeks with leaders saying they'll try to fashion a proposal for a vote. One proposal already introduced would open up areas in the eastern Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean off the southeastern U.S. coast to drilling but would increase taxes on oil and gas companies as well. Source: UPI.com

09/09/2008 - Research: Sea Rise Might Not Be So High

Despite projections by some scientists of global seas rising by 20 feet or more by the end of this century as a result of warming, a new University of Colorado at Boulder study concludes that global sea rise of much more than 6 feet is a near physical impossibility. The researchers concluded the most plausible scenario, when factoring in thermal expansion due to warming waters, will lead to a total sea level rise of roughly 3 to 6 feet by 2100. Soruce: Science Daily

08/25/2008 - Norway to Focus on Technology at Home

The Norwegian oil industry has gained much from international involvement over the last 10 years. The industry now feels a need to focus on enhancing technology on its home turf. The Norwegian petroleum industry has trebled its international turnover over the last 10 years and the rate of growth continues to rise. The KonKraft Report "Internationalisation" claims that Norwegian companies have become global market leaders in subsea equipment, drilling equipment, floating production, and supply services. Source: EnergyCurrent

08/24/2008 - Tags Tell Salmons' Tale

Between June 10 and June 23, Atlantic salmon tagged with tiny acoustic transmitters crossed the 22 kilometer line of acoustic receivers, deployed by the Ocean Tracking Network (OTN), in the waters off of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The fish, tagged by The NOAA, and the United States Geological Survey in the Penobscot River in Maine, sent signals to the receivers, and information about their passage was then downloaded from the receivers to a Fisheries and Oceans Canada research vessel via modem. One hundred salmon were tagged in Maine USA with 9-milimeter transmitters in the Penobscot River. About 30 percent of their signals were picked up by OTN receivers. Each fish has an individual code and gives specific information about its activity such as survival rates, speed and migratory habits. The information has shown that while some salmon may die before reaching Halifax, many still survive.

08/23/2008 - Ocean Mooring System Urged for Southern Hemisphere

The senior science advisor to the World Climate Research Programme has called for the establishment of a Southern Hemisphere network of deep ocean moorings to detect any change in ocean circulation that may adversely influence global climate.In a commentary published in the journal Science today, Dr John Church of the Antarctic Climate and Ecosystem Cooperative Research Centre and CSIRO, through the Wealth from Oceans Flagship, said a Southern Hemisphere observing network is needed to complement a network of moorings now spanning the North Atlantic Ocean. Source: EurkaAlert

08/22/2008 - Inflation Outpaces Science and Engineering R&D for Second Year

Federal funding of academic science and engineering (S&E) R&D failed to outpace inflation for the second year in a row, according to FY 2007 data from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Survey of Research and Development Expenditures at Universities and Colleges. In current dollars, federally funded academic R&D expenditures rose 1.1% in FY 2007 to $30.4 billion. After adjusting for inflation, this represents a 1.6% decline from FY 2006 and follows a 0.2% decline from the FY 2005 level. A 2-year decline in federal funding in constant dollars is unprecedented for this data series, which began in 1972. Source: National Science Foundation

08/21/2008 - Deep Water Dominates GOM Lease Sale

Western Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 207 attracted $487,297,676 in high bids from 53 companies. Over $607 million was exposed in the bidding. Around 80 percent of the bids were made on blocks in water depths of over 1,000 feet (304.8 m), reflecting the oil and gas industry's continuing move towards the deep waters of the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Source: EnergyCurrent

08/20/2008 - NY Mayor Looks to Wind Power

New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg will ask private companies and investors to study how windmills can be built across the city and offshore with the aim of weaning it off the nation’s overtaxed power grid. Aids said the city was looking at the generally windy coasts off Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island for turbines that could generate 10 percent of the city's electricity needs within 10 years. Howver, the mayo