In this volume, you will find information about the formation, exploration and production of marine resources: not only oil and gas but also ores, in the form of manganese nodules, cobalt crusts and massive sulphides. A separate chapter is devoted to methane hydrates. The extraction of all these resources poses major technical challenges and is a highly contentious issue due to the environmental risks involved. It could also become the basis for a powerful economic sector with the prospect of extremely high returns and significant political ramifications. Yet if such large-scale business is hidden from view, this not only poses a threat to the environment: it also jeopardizes fundamental human rights and social justice. The multinationals in particular, such as Shell, ExxonMobil and Total, which have been producing oil in West Africa for years, saw no need to protect the natural environment or to ensure equitable sharing of benefits from oil revenue in the past.
World Ocean Review 2014