NERC - Ocean Margin LINK Programme Nears Completion
Dr. Alick Leslie (aleslie@bgs.ac.uk) is Ocean Margins LINK Science Coordinator at NERC. Following is an update on the Ocean Margin LINK Programme and the challenges it tackled.
Ocean Margin LINK Programme
The Ocean Margin LINK Programme is nearing its completion stage. The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) recently announced that the Ocean Margins LINK 'KT' final event will take place on Thursday 15th February 2007 at The Royal Society, London.
This event marks the end of the £4.8 million, Ocean Margins LINK Programme, aimed at a better geological understanding of ocean margins. Ocean margins (where the deep oceans meet continental shelves) include the sites of some of the world's largest accumulations of sediments which may provide the source of significant reserves of oil and gas.
The Programme encouraged collaboration & partnership between the UK science base and industry, in particular, multidisciplinary science that helped tackle some of the following specific challenges:
- improving exploration efficiency
- characterising & exploiting hydrocarbon reservoirs
- investigating gas hydrates, both as a hazard and as a potential energy source
- predicting deep water geohazards
- managing hydrocarbon resources
- deep-water environment sustainability
The Ocean Margins LINK Programme is jointly funded by NERC, the UK Government and UK industry. The Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) have also contributed funding to projects within a specific theme.
Further details of the outcome of this research are presented in an exclusive article on the Ocean Margins LINK Programme by Dr. Alick Leslie in this issue of IOR Views.