RESOURCES OF THE WORLD OCEAN.

Resources of the oceans - natural elements, substances and types of energy that are extracted or can be extracted directly from the waters, coastal land, the bottom or bowels of the oceans.

World Ocean-huge storehouse of natural resources.

biological resources - fish, molluscs, crustaceans, cetaceans, algae. About 90% of the harvested commercial objects are fish. The shelf zone accounts for more than 90% of the global catch of fish and non-fish species. The largest part of the world's catch comes from the waters of the temperate and high latitudes of the Northern Hemisphere. From the oceans The largest catch comes from the Pacific Ocean. Of the seas of the World Ocean, the most productive are the Norwegian, Bering, Okhotsk, and Japanese seas.

In our time, "the era of global problems", the World Ocean plays an increasingly important role in the life of mankind. Being a huge pantry of mineral, energy, plant and animal wealth, which - with their rational consumption and artificial reproduction - can be considered practically inexhaustible, the Ocean is able to solve one of the most pressing problems: the need to provide a rapidly growing population with food and raw materials for a developing industry, danger of an energy crisis, lack of fresh water.

The main resource of the World Ocean is sea water. It contains 75 chemical elements, among which are such important ones as uranium, potassium, bromine, magnesium. And although the main product of sea water is still table salt - 33% of world production, magnesium and bromine are already mined, methods for obtaining a number of metals have long been patented, among them copper and silver, which are necessary for industry, the reserves of which are steadily depleted, when, as in oceanic their waters contain up to half a billion tons. In connection with the development of nuclear energy, there are good prospects for the extraction of uranium and deuterium from the waters of the World Ocean, especially since the reserves of uranium ores on earth are decreasing, and in the Ocean there are 10 billion tons of it, deuterium is practically inexhaustible - for every 5000 atoms of ordinary hydrogen there is one heavy atom. In addition to the isolation of chemical elements, sea water can be used to obtain fresh water necessary for humans. Many commercial desalination methods are now available: chemical reactions are used to remove impurities from water; salt water is passed through special filters; finally, the usual boiling is performed. But desalination is not the only way to obtain potable water. There are bottom sources that are increasingly being found on the continental shelf, that is, in areas of the continental shelf adjacent to the shores of land and having the same geological structure as it. One of these sources, located off the coast of France - in Normandy, gives such an amount of water that it is called an underground river.

The mineral resources of the World Ocean are represented not only by sea water, but also by what is "under water". The bowels of the ocean, its bottom are rich in mineral deposits. On the continental shelf there are coastal placer deposits - gold, platinum; there are also precious stones - rubies, diamonds, sapphires, emeralds. For example, near Namibia, diamond gravel has been mined underwater since 1962. On the shelf and partly on the continental slope of the Ocean, there are large deposits of phosphorites that can be used as fertilizers, and the reserves will last for the next few hundred years. The most interesting type of mineral raw materials of the World Ocean is the famous ferromanganese nodules, which cover vast underwater plains. Concretions are a kind of "cocktail" of metals: they include copper, cobalt, nickel, titanium, vanadium, but, of course, most of all iron and manganese. Their locations are well known, but the results of industrial development are still very modest. But the exploration and production of oceanic oil and gas on the coastal shelf is in full swing, the share of offshore production is approaching 1/3 of the world production of these energy carriers. On an especially large scale, deposits are being developed in the Persian, Venezuelan, Gulf of Mexico, and in the North Sea; oil platforms stretched off the coast of California, Indonesia, in the Mediterranean and Caspian Seas. The Gulf of Mexico is also famous for the sulfur deposit discovered during oil exploration, which is melted from the bottom with the help of superheated water. Another, as yet untouched pantry of the ocean are deep crevices, where a new bottom is formed. So, for example, hot (more than 60 degrees) and heavy brines of the Red Sea depression contain huge reserves of silver, tin, copper, iron and other metals. The extraction of materials in shallow water is becoming more and more important. Around Japan, for example, underwater iron-bearing sands are sucked out through pipes, the country extracts about 20% of coal from sea mines - an artificial island is built over rock deposits and a shaft is drilled to open coal seams.

Many natural processes occurring in the World Ocean - movement, temperature regime of waters - are inexhaustible energy resources. For example, the total tidal power of the Ocean is estimated at 1 to 6 billion kWh. This property of ebb and flow was used in France already in the Middle Ages: in the XII century, mills were built, the wheels of which were set in motion by a tidal wave. Today in France there are modern power plants that use the same principle of operation: the rotation of the turbines at high tide occurs in one direction, and at low tide - in the other.

The main wealth of the World Ocean is its biological resources (fish, zoo - and phytoplankton and others). The biomass of the Ocean has 150 thousand species of animals and 10 thousand algae, and its total volume is estimated at 35 billion tons, which may well be enough to feed 30 billion! Human. Catching 85-90 million tons of fish annually, it accounts for 85% of the used marine products, shellfish, algae, humanity provides about 20% of its needs for animal proteins. The living world of the Ocean is a huge food resource that can be inexhaustible if used properly and carefully. The maximum fish catch should not exceed 150-180 million tons per year: it is very dangerous to exceed this limit, as irreparable losses will occur. Many varieties of fish, whales, and pinnipeds have almost disappeared from ocean waters due to immoderate hunting, and it is not known whether their population will ever recover. But the population of the Earth is growing at a rapid pace, increasingly in need of marine products. There are several ways to increase its productivity. The first is to remove from the ocean not only fish, but also zooplankton, part of which - Antarctic krill - has already been eaten. It is possible, without any damage to the Ocean, to catch it in much larger quantities than all the fish caught at the present time. The second way is to use the biological resources of the open ocean. The biological productivity of the Ocean is especially great in the area of ​​upwelling of deep waters. One of such upwellings Upwelling is the rise of water from the depth of a reservoir to the surface. It is caused by steadily blowing winds that drive surface waters towards the open sea, and in return, the waters of the underlying layers rise to the surface., located off the coast of Peru, provides 15% of the world's fish production, although its area is no more than two hundredths of a percent of the entire surface of the World ocean. Finally, the third way is the cultural breeding of living organisms, mainly in coastal zones. All these three methods have been successfully tested in many countries of the world, but locally, therefore, the fish catch, which is detrimental in terms of volume, continues. At the end of the 20th century, the Norwegian, Bering, Okhotsk, and Sea of ​​Japan were considered the most productive water areas.

In recent years, the breeding of certain species of organisms on artificially created marine plantations has become more and more widespread in the world. These fisheries are called mariculture. The development of mariculture takes place in Japan (oysters-pearl oysters), China (oysters-pearl oysters), USA (oysters and mussels), France (oysters), Australia (oysters), the Netherlands (oysters, mussels), the Mediterranean countries of Europe (mussels). In Russia, in the seas of the Far East, they grow seaweed (kelp), sea scallops.

The ocean, being a pantry of the most diverse resources, is also a free and convenient road that connects continents and islands that are distant from each other. Maritime transport provides almost 80% of transportation between countries, serving the growing global production and exchange.

Tidal power plants help solve the problem of the energy crisis on the sea and ocean coasts. Mills also work with the help of surfs. There are projects that will not require the construction of dams, those terrible blood clots on the rivers, to accumulate water - including drinking water and the need for bypass channels will no longer threaten - the glaciers of the Northern Ocean can water the deserts.

Based on the generalization of the material, it can be concluded that the World Ocean is the future of mankind. Numerous organisms live in its waters, many of which are a valuable bioresource of the planet, and in the thickness of the earth's crust covered with the Ocean - most of all the mineral resources of the Earth. Despite the huge prospects for using the depths of the world ocean, as well as its energy from tides, waves, etc., humanity at this stage of its technical development has focused mainly on oil and gas production in easily accessible near-continental areas and active (up to the threat of extermination) catching the biomass of the seas. and oceans of the earth.

The water shell that surrounds the continents and islands and is continuous and unified is called

The word "ocean" comes from the Greek. oceanos, which means "a great river flowing around the whole earth."

The concept of the World Ocean as a whole was put into use by a Russian oceanologist Yu. M. Shokalsky(1856-1940) in 1917

The ocean is the custodian of water. In the Southern Hemisphere, it occupies 81% of the territory, in the Northern - only 61%, which indicates an uneven distribution of land on our planet and is one of the main factors in the formation of the nature of the Earth. The ocean influences the climate (since it is a huge accumulator of solar heat and moisture, thanks to it, sharp temperature fluctuations are smoothed out on Earth, remote areas of land are moistened), soils, flora and fauna; is a source of various resources.

They stand out in a separate part of the Earth's hydrosphere - oceanosphere, which accounts for 361.3 million km2, or 70.8% of the area of ​​the globe. The mass of ocean water is about 250 times the mass of the atmosphere.

The oceans are not just water, but a single natural formation in its essence.

Unity of the World Ocean how the water mass is ensured by its continuous movement in both horizontal and vertical directions; homogeneous universal composition of waters, which is an ionized solution containing all the chemical elements of the periodic table, etc.

All processes occurring in the World Ocean have a pronounced zonal and vertical character. The natural and vertical belts of the ocean are described in Sec. "Biosphere of the Earth".

The world ocean is a habitat for many forms of life, as it has quite favorable conditions for the development of life. Almost 300 thousand species of plants and animals live here, including fish, cetaceans (whales and dolphins), cephalopods (octopuses and squids), crustaceans, sea worms, corals, etc., as well as algae. More details about the inhabitants of the oceans are described in sec. "Biosphere of the Earth".

The oceans are of great importance for the nature of the Earth and man. For example, the transport significance of the ocean is simply undeniable. Back in the 19th century the importance of the oceans as a means of communication between continents and countries became obvious. Currently, a huge amount of cargo is transported by world seaports. Although sea transport is not the fastest, it is one of the cheapest.

So, the meaning of the oceans is as follows:

• is an accumulator of solar heat;
• determines the weather, climate;
• habitat for hundreds of thousands of species;
• these are the "lungs of the planet";
• is a source of seafood, mineral resources;
• used as a transport route;
• it is the supplier of fresh water as a result of evaporation and the transfer of moisture to land.

Natural resources of the oceans

The waters of the oceans are rich in various resources. Among them are of great value organic (biological) resources. At the same time, about 90% of the biological resources of the ocean are fish resources.

In the first place in terms of production volumes in the world fishery are herrings. Salmon and especially sturgeon fish are of particular wealth. Mostly fish are caught in the shelf zone. The use of fish is not limited to just eating, it is used as fodder meal, technical fat, fertilizers.

Hypericum(they hunt walruses, seals, fur seals) and whaling fisheries are now either limited or banned altogether.

Fishery related to trapping invertebrates and crustaceans, has become widespread in the countries of Southeast Asia and many other coastal countries, in which mollusks and echinoderms are widely used for food. Shellfish are highly valued in the market. One of the representatives of crustaceans is krill, from which food protein and vitamins are produced.

The most important natural resource of the ocean, used for food preparation, for obtaining iodine, paper, glue, etc., - seaweed.

Also recently, the artificial cultivation of living organisms in the waters of the World Ocean (aquaculture) has become widespread.

chief chemical resource oceans are the water itself and the chemical elements dissolved in it. There are about 800 desalination plants operating in the world, which results in the annual extraction of millions of cubic meters of fresh water. However, the cost of this water is very high.

Main mineral resources extracted from the bottom of the sea is oil and gas. Their production continues and is growing rapidly every year. Coal, iron ore, tin and many other minerals are also mined, but this mining has not yet been fully established.

Huge and energetic resources ocean. So, water contains a promising fuel for nuclear reactors - deuterium (heavy water).

In some countries of the world (France, Great Britain, Canada, China, India, Russia, etc.) tidal power plants (TPPs) operate. The first TPP in the world was built in France in 1966. It was built at the mouth of the Rane River and is called "La Rane". It is currently the world's largest tidal power plant. Its installed capacity is 240 MW. The volume of electricity production is about 600 million kWh.

More than 100 years ago, scientists put forward the idea of ​​obtaining energy due to the difference in water temperatures in the surface and deep layers of the ocean. After 1973, extensive practical research was launched in this direction. There are experimental facilities in the Hawaiian Islands, where the temperature difference at the surface of the water and at a depth of about one kilometer is 22 °C. Another hydrothermal station was built on the west coast of Africa near the city of Abidjan (the largest city in the state of Côte d'Ivoire). Power plants using the energy of sea waves can operate on a similar principle to tidal ones. One of these power plants, although of low power, was commissioned in commissioned in Norway in 1985

Due to the rich chemical composition, sea water has many healing properties, and sea air is saturated with many ions. This indicates the possibility of using recreational resources ocean. Sea water brings a special effect when used together with therapeutic mud and thermal waters. Therefore, seaside resorts, such as the Mediterranean, resorts of California, Florida, etc., are in great demand.