THE Brent Spar saga continues to enthral the scientific world. The high-decibel dispute between Shell and Greenpeace earlier this summer about the state of the deep ocean off western Scotland, where Shell wanted to dump the redundant oil storage rig, has set off a fascinating debate about the deep ocean.
Many scientists gave Shell the benefit of the doubt about the merits of their case, content to dismiss the bottom of the deep seas as an unchanging and largely lifeless part of the planet. But John Gage and John Gordon of the Scottish Association for Marine Science at Dunstaffnage (see This Week), who probably know more about the dumping grounds than anybody else, tell a very different story. They say that if Shell鈥檚 scientific consultants had troubled to ask them, the company鈥檚 published report on the best option for disposal of the platform would have read very differently.
Gage and Gordon take issue with claims by Rudall Blanchard Associates, Shell鈥檚 consultants, that the deep ocean 鈥渟upports a small range of species鈥�; that deep-water fishing does not take place in the area; and that water currents at the site are what atmospheric meteorologists would call 鈥渄ead calm鈥�. In letters to Shell and Greenpeace, Gage and Gordon say that the dumping ground has a high biological diversity, often receives visits from fish that appear in Scottish markets, and experiences severe deep water storms.
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What this adds up to in terms of the Brent Spar is, as Gage and Gordon agree, far from obvious. But they do say that 鈥渁ny disposal option based implicitly on characterisation of the deep sea as a 鈥榣ow-activity ecosystem鈥� clearly is now highly inappropriate鈥�.
It is clear that we need to find out much more about the deep oceans, and what we already know must be better disseminated. The days when economic activity was restricted to the continental shelves are past. From oil exploitation to waste disposal industries 鈥� and Greenpeace 鈥� need to know what is happening in the deeps.
Environmental research often has to wait until commercial and political imperatives unlock the necessary funds. Thanks to the Brent Spar, marine scientists may now be able to tap the worries of commercial research directors and government ministers and throw light on some of the dark corners of our planet. Down there may not be a cold and dull world ready to receive our waste. As Gage and Gordon say, its invertebrates make it the marine equivalent of the rainforest (see Illustration).
