FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

While ocean fertilization is a naturally occurring process that has been at the center of ocean-based carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration schemes, Ocean Seeding is the specific application of ocean fertilization to revitalize local marine ecosystems which in turn recover the depleted marine ecology and fish stocks.

Ocean Seeding aims to trigger the growth of a plankton bloom at a small, local scale in environmentally barren areas of the ocean within known migration routes of fish populations. The induced plankton bloom provides juvenile fish with food at a critical time of their development, dramatically enhancing their chance of survival resulting in a decrease in population mortality. It’s a sustainable and effective intervention that provides for them till adulthood, where they can be harvested with less risk of overfishing or damage to the ecosystem.

Project locations are carefully selected for an optimal benefit to the local ecosystem and fish populations. First, an area is chosen based on intersections with known migration routes or nurseries of economically important fish. Second, High Nutrient, Low Chlorophyll (HNLC) zones are identified that are ripe for iron incorporation, since they represent an iron-limited ecosystem missing a vital nutrient, so low concentrations strategically placed can rapidly revitalize the whole ecological system.
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The natural process of ocean fertilization has been ongoing on for billions of years, where global winds, volcanoes, and current upwellings deposit dust containing key nutrients, like iron, in the ocean that in turn trigger the growth of plankton. The difference with Ocean Seeding is its implementation: it mimics the natural process but within a carefully selected area in the open ocean, at the right time of juvenile fish development or when migrating fish are passing through. Ocean Seeding is tailored to revitalize fish populations, so its execution is limited to small scale areas that need immediate ecological restoration, where the natural conditions cannot support ecosystems anymore due to the effects of climate change and human impact.

Geoengineering includes deliberate technological methods aimed to counter climate change on a global scale; carbon sequestration being among these schemes. Oceaneos’ application of ocean fertilization is not geoengineering. Oceaneos conducts Ocean Seeding in small-scale, scientifically controlled projects, aimed to enhance fish stock locally and revitalize marine ecosystems that have been damaged and depleted by climate change, pollution, and overfishing.
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For Ocean Seeding projects, only very low quantities of iron are required to achieve the desired fertilization effects. It takes a few weeks to deposit 10 to 100 tons of iron in a ratio of about 1 cup of iron powder per hectare open ocean. The effects of ecosystem revitalization and population recovery are measured over the course of approximately 18 months.

Ocean Seeding projects are executed within the 200 mile Exclusive Economic Zone of a nation require environmental permits issued by that nation. Furthermore, ocean fertilization in the high seas is regulated through the London Convention, a regulation implemented by the United Nations and signed by 87 countries. Under this regulation, Ocean fertilization projects for scientific purposes need to be approved by the International Maritime Organization (IMO). Oceaneos only implements Ocean Seeding projects after obtaining the required environmental permits and in close collaboration with government and fishery industry.
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The idea to use ocean fertilization to capture carbon dioxide is based on the natural process in which plankton consumes CO2 when it grows. When plankton dies and sinks to the bottom of the ocean, the absorbed CO2 can be stored for extended periods of time and may even become the next Dover cliffs or even petroleum oil. Several scientific institutions are currently researching the topic, and the long-term carbon sequestration effects are being still debated. Oceaneos has not involved in carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration schemes or carbon accounting.
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No. Oceaneos is not involved in carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration schemes or carbon accounting. Oceaneos’ application of ocean fertilization use Ocean Seeding to enhance fisheries and revitalize marine ecosystems that have been damaged by climate change, pollution, and unsustainable harvest methods.

Phytoplankton are microscopic, photosynthetic organisms that float on the top layers of the ocean to harness sunlight and convert it to organic matter. Phytoplankton are the foundation of the marine ecosystem, and for billions of years they reshaped the planet and the atmosphere; giving rise to air-breathing organisms, ancestors to animals like us. There are two main types. On one hand, the PROKARYOTES, or single cells without internal compartments, of which cyanobacteria are the most important subgroup, have been terraforming the planet and its ecosystems for billions of years. On the other hand, the more derived eukaryotes include the diverse diatoms, which are shelled organisms with geometric silica cases that drift with currents and the dinoflagellates, which are less common, but actively move through the water column. Phytoplankton are responsible for some of the bioluminescence we see in the ocean and a broad range of compounds, including toxins. Some are only photosynthetic, while some can actively hunt for other organisms and even other phytoplankton.
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Typically, red tides are rampant blooms of coastal dinoflagellates, a type of plankton, which are preyed upon by each other and by larger organisms in the food chain. To protect themselves, these microscopic shelled organisms release toxins, which is the primary cause of what we humans call shellfish poisoning, but it affects all levels of marine life in different ways. Other coastal species of plankton are also capable of releasing toxins. Shorelines are the perfect scenario for red tides, with abundant predation and nutrients, they happen seasonally and die off after a couple of months; usually with serious adverse effects to local coastal organisms at their peak of activity. Red tides do not happen in the open ocean, as the environmental and ecological conditions do not support their formation.
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The ocean is an unfathomably vast environment, the largest and oldest ecosystem known. It’s governed by an incredibly complex interplay of mechanisms, many of which have experienced sudden and drastic changes due to human impact, which has been dramatic given how recent they are compared to the planet’s history. The oceans are changing due to some interrelated factors at local, regional and global scales. OCEAN WARMING sharpens the differences in surface layers and inhibits water mixing that is vital for ocean ecology. ACIDIFICATION happens due to the diffusion of carbon dioxide into the water, which lowers the pH, hindering important chemistry some organisms need to survive, as well as reducing oxygen levels at an alarming rate. DEOXYGENATION happens when large plankton blooms occur in the same coastal area for extended periods of time; they die off and fall into the seafloor where decomposition uses up oxygen. This typically occurs near shore where nutrients are abundant either as a result of pollution or natural causes such as upwelling. POLLUTION has direct effects on ecosystems, killing wildlife through toxins and contamination, including many economically important species. OVERFISHING is a management problem; the unsustainable overharvest of species that does not allow for populations to recover fast enough from the little numbers left behind. However, a lesser-known and crucial factor in the fish stock decline is PLANKTON CHANGE in either timing and biomass as plankton adapts to changing conditions. Oceanic phytoplankton is arguably the most important group of organisms on Earth. They are the food source of the marine ecosystem, are responsible for more than half of the planet’s biomass production and more than 70% of the oxygen we breathe. But climate change is changing this. Fish are dying as a consequence, and this is a symptom of a much larger, urgent problem. We need immediate term solutions, to establish sustainable fishing practices that ensure food security; median term solutions, to fix the ecosystems and mitigate human-driven ecological decay; and long term solutions, to restore our planet back to health.
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It’s a method that ensures long term fish stock harvest without compromising the health and stability of economically important marine populations. Its an environmentally healthy practice that ensures food security in the present and into the future.
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Yes, Ocean Seeding attempts to restore the natural marine food chain which has been altered by climate change, pollution, overfishing or a combination of all three.

Ecological systems are incredibly complex, and even though they can be measured and understood, there are many possible outcomes to shifts in starting conditions. Among them three are often mentioned: RED TIDES (read more: Does ocean fertilization create red tides?), DEAD ZONES (read more: Does ocean fertilization create dead zones?), and TOXICITY (read more: Does ocean fertilization make the ocean toxic?). Note that these risks can be prevented or mitigated through careful project location, timing, and implementation.The largest environmental risk posed by ocean fertilization experimentation is simply a lack of knowledge.
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