News Release

University of New Hampshire to help US gain $1.3 trillion in ocean resources

Project funded with $3.2 million appropriation just approved by Congress

Peer-Reviewed Publication

University of New Hampshire



STAKING A CLAIM: Under a provision in the United Nations Law of the Sea, scientists at the University of New Hampshire' Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping are confident that the U.S. can substantially expand the limits of its continental shelf. Shown here is a map of New Jersey's continental shelf. The smooth white contour was derived from low-resolution data produced primarily by sparse single-beam data sources. The more detailed jagged line is derived from full-cover multibeam sonar data. This more detailed information can be used by scientists to expand the United States claim. (Image: UNH Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping)

Full size image available through contact

DURHAM, NH -- The University of New Hampshire will lead an ocean mapping project that could expand the internationally recognized U.S. continental shelf on both the east and west coast with land containing up to $1.3 trillion in resources according to some estimates. The project will be funded with a $3.2 million appropriation secured by Senator Judd Gregg and approved this week by Congress.

"We are very confident that we can expand the limits of our continental shelf," says Larry Mayer, director of UNH's Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping (C-COM) and an earth sciences professor. Mayer and Martin Jakobsson, research scientist, have been gathering data to show where the U.S. might logically make its expanded claims--which would include access to oil, mineral, and fisheries resources.

The stakes are huge, according to Science, the journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which reported the $1.3 trillion estimate in its December 6, 2002, issue.

A 1982 U.N. convention on the Law of the Sea gave about 150 coastal nations control of an exclusive economic zone that extends 200 miles off their shores. According to one provision of the convention, some countries stand to gain territory and resources if they can prove their claim to the sea floor. While the US has not yet formally approved the Law of the Sea Treaty, it is moving to protect potential US interests.

But to make that claim, they need a map providing critical information such as seismic data (to determine sediment thickness) and bathymetry (determining the shape of the ocean floor) "With poor data, it will be difficult to make a claim," says Jakobsson. "So the first step was determining what information exists--and where we need to gather more."

A map produced two years ago by Jakobsson providing the world's most up-to-date information on the floor of the Arctic Ocean led Gregg to request a report on what would be needed to protect US interests under the Law of the Sea; NOAA turned to the University of New Hampshire for technical input to the report, which was delivered to Congress last summer.

Senator Gregg, who now heads the Appropriations Subcommittee for NOAA, added the $3.2 million for UNH's C-COM to lead a large survey to gather the needed data for the U.S. claim. "It's a minor investment," says Mayer, "for the potential gain in our ability to access and control the oil, mineral, and fisheries resources off our continental margins."

For more about UNH's Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, visit: http://www.ccom.unh.edu.

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This release is also available at http://www.ceps.unh.edu/news/releases03/lawofsea303.html

For more about UNH's Center for Coastal and Ocean Mapping, visit: http://www.ccom.unh.edu/
Or contact:
Larry Mayer: 603-862-2615,(larry.mayer@unh.edu).
Martin Jakobsson: 603-862-3755,(martin.jakobsson@unh.edu).


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