’’Ocean is a shared resource, if one country pollutes, others get affected’’ - Norwegian ocean scientist

• Data, observations, information, and knowledge should be shared among different nations
• Ocean science can be a critical tool to avoid conflicts
• It is amazing to see what ocean holds for mankind
• Potential of deep-sea minerals is overstated

Only if you make sure that the  ocean ecosystem is functioning, that it actually has the resources  needed, only then can it support long-term sustainable fisheries

We don’t really understand the marine  environment, because, even if some of us are divers, we don’t really see  the complicated marine organisms

You  have a changing precipitation system and different run-off from land. You  can also have different contributions from agriculture and industries  that would affect the marine environment

Being  close to the ocean does something good for your health.  That’s why all  the tourist resources want to be with a sea view. It  has actually been proven by medical doctors that it actually works

There are  other minerals that we still have a lot of undiscovered on land. Actually,  it’s much easier to mine on land than in the deep sea because many of  these resources are several thousand metres deep 

Peter  M. Haugan, the policy director at the Institute of Marine Research,  Norway and a professor at the Geophysical Institute, University of  Bergen in Norway, shares his vision on the blue economy and what the  ocean holds for the benefit of mankind.  He has more than 30 years of  experience in marine scientific research and international ocean science  coordination covering ocean, climate and energy issues. His  professional merits include five years as a Research engineer in the  petroleum industry in the early 1980s.   He was in 

Sri Lanka at the  invitation of the Pathfinder Foundation.

QHow important is it for the countries to get together to realise the potential of a blue economy for shared prosperity?

I  think that’s crucial. The ocean is a shared resource.  There’s only one  ocean, and you have it together.  I know that there are fisheries  resources that move.  Fisheries then have to go across borders, perhaps.   If one country pollutes, it can affect the other country.  So, you need  to have collaboration on that.  We have also seen from many other  regions where countries go together at the highest political level. The  heads of state agree to jointly manage and use a shared resource like  the ocean.  Only then can we really harness the possibilities that the  ocean economy offers.

QAs far as the realisation of the full potential of the blue economy in this region is concerned, what is your assessment?

Well,  I’m not an expert on the region. So, I shouldn’t be too specific on  that.  But I think, in general, what we see is that investing in the sustainable planning of the ocean resources is very good. It is an  investment that gives a good return. Only if you make sure that the  ocean ecosystem is functioning, that it actually has the resources  needed, only then can it support long-term sustainable fisheries.  Only  then can you get the resources out of the system.

The other  aspects of the ocean economy are typically maritime transportation and  tourism.  Tourism is also much easier to do in a well-functioning,  healthy ocean. You will not have tourists coming to look at a polluted  ocean.

QIn recent months and years, Sri Lanka has experienced a  change in climate. As far as the Indian Ocean is concerned, how does it  affect climate change?

Yes, we have seen it in other parts of  the world. I come from a very cold country. What happens there is that  if we have heat waves, even in the ocean, some fish stocks move. That  could happen here as well.  I think we don’t know enough about how  quickly that would happen. But it could happen because different fish  have different preferred temperatures and conditions.

You  have, in this region, run-off from land, which is polluted water.  You  have a changing precipitation system and different run-off from land. You  can also have different contributions from agriculture and industries  that would affect the marine environment. When the climate changes, these  will also change.  I think that’s where we need to know a bit more about  what the perspectives are and what the actual impacts are on different  parts of the environment.

QHow important is it for  countries like Sri Lanka to devote a percentage of their national  budgets to doing research in the ocean, actually?

It pays off.   It’s an investment. We are humans. We are land animals. We understand  trees, plants, animals and land. We don’t really understand the marine  environment, because, even if some of us are divers, we don’t really see  the complicated marine organisms. We may fish for some species. We have  some shellfish and something that we know.  But the marine environment  is so fascinating, with plants and animals and how it all works.

I’m  sure there are unutilised resources in the ocean beyond what we  normally eat and normally take out. Only by researching it, creating  people’s attention to the ocean, providing ocean literacy to the people  at large, writing in newspapers like you are doing to educate people,  only then can we realise the potential of the ocean for a blue economy.

QCan you support your point with some examples?

You  may be surprised at this- Ocean and Human Health.  People talk about  one’s health. It is amazing how people’s health relates to the ocean in  different ways.

From food to medicine, there are a lot of  untapped resources. There are genetic resources in the ocean for  medicine.  You can see some of the COVID medicines came from this.  

Being  close to the ocean does something good for your health.  That’s why all  the tourist resources want to be with a sea view. People like it. It  has actually been proven by medical doctors that it actually works. A  connection to the ocean is probably something installed in our bodies  and brains even before the human race developed properly. We are  connected to the ocean. We like to be there.

QWe also have some untapped petroleum resources in the ocean. What is your opinion about them, particularly in this region?

I  don’t think it would be unfair if Sri Lanka develops its petroleum  resources. My home country, Norway, is a big oil and gas country.  We  had a big discussion. We should reduce oil and gas production because of  the climate impact of fossil fuels.

I’m hoping that the age of  oil and gas is limited. So, there is a danger in investing in  petroleum.  It will not be something that you can rely on for a very  long time.

QIs that the kind of idea or advice you can present to the Sri Lankan government?

Yes, that’s my personal opinion.  It is a risky business because it won’t be long-lasting.

But  I would not say that it’s wrong for Sri Lanka, also like lots of other  countries, to exploit its own natural resources. That’s a natural  thing.  But it is a risky investment.

QOceanic activities  lead to geopolitical issues among countries. Now, for example, Sri Lanka  is facing a huge issue with India, which protests Chinese research  vessels involved in maritime research activities here. What is your  view?

I have a very strong opinion about ocean research and how it can be used and should be used. 

I  think it’s crucially important that ocean research is done in a way  where data, observations, information, and knowledge gathered from that  are shared among different nations, particularly when it happens in  international waters.

If another country wants to do scientific  research in the exclusive economic zone of, for example, Sri Lanka, it  has to have a permit. Then, the country can add conditions that they put  scientists on board and that they get the data and so on.  I think  there is great potential for international collaboration in ocean  science. 

The Dr. Fridtjof Nansen vessel that is operated by the  Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), funded by Norway and with  scientists from my institution will be coming here in the middle of  August to do a survey where we will have Sri Lankan scientists on board  for one leg in Sri Lankan waters and then it will go to Bangladesh with  Bangladeshi scientists on board to do investigations in their waters. 

I  think there is great potential for more research vessels, small and  large, to work together to cover different areas, to share data, to  share expertise, provide capacity building for science, but also to  provide information to the public - ocean literacy. 

QTo avoid these geopolitical concerns, how can countries cooperate with each other?

I  think they can do it under the present programme called the United  Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. It’s a very  long name, but it runs from 2021 to 2030. We are mid-term in that  decade.

I just call it the ocean decade because it’s really  focused on that.  Under that framework, you can go together, and create  projects and programmes that address various missing information in  science, and ways for mechanisms by which ocean science can inform  policy development. I think that could also be explored for this region  very much.

Transparency is a key word because, if you have political, geopolitical tensions and conflicts, the worst thing that  can happen is that opposing parties have different information,  different data.  But if you have the same information, the same  scientific observations, the same basis, it provides a much better basis  for both negotiations and agreement rather than conflict.

I  think ocean science can be a critical tool to avoid conflicts and  actually lead the way towards more collaboration between nations. 

QHow do you see the issue of rare minerals in the ocean?

I  think the potential of deep-sea minerals to be crucial for the  transformation to renewable energy is actually overstated. I think it’s  not so easy to mine these minerals.  I think there are some minerals  which are in demand, like copper and maybe cobalt and so on. There are  other minerals that we still have a lot of undiscovered on land. Actually,  it’s much easier to mine on land than in the deep sea because many of  these resources are several thousand metres deep. You have to have very  sophisticated, very expensive equipment to get it out. It will be  difficult to manage the environmental consequences if you do that.