| Title | Fifty years of surficial marine geoscience for canadians: a scientist's view |
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| Author | Piper, D J W |
| Source | 2014 p. 211-214 |
| Image |  |
| Year | 2014 |
| Alt Series | Earth Sciences Sector, Contribution Series 20150171 |
| Publisher | BIO Oceans Association |
| Document | book |
| Lang. | English |
| Media | paper; on-line; digital |
| File format | pdf |
| Province | Offshore region |
| Subjects | economic geology; fossil fuels; hydrogeology; marine geology; sedimentology; surficial geology/geomorphology; oceanography; bathymetry; petroleum; mapping techniques; sedimentation; sediments;
sedimentary environment; petroleum exploration; petroleum resources; basin analysis |
| Illustrations | tables |
| Program | Public Safety Geoscience Public Safety Geoscience - Coordination |
| Released | 2014 01 01 |
| Abstract | Canada's seas and oceans, once the claim under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is accepted, will make up more than 42% of the Canadian territory. Canada has by far the longest
coastline in the world. Mapping and understanding the geology of this vast marine area is about 100 years behind the analogous process on land. Despite 50 years of work by the Bedford Institute of Oceanography (BIO), almost all of the marine area
north of 50°N off eastern and northern Canada is known only at a reconnaissance level, the way that much of the Canadian land territory was known in 1912. A six-pronged strategy for acquiring geological knowledge served BIO well over the past 50
years and with adaptations is suitable for the next 50 years. The key elements of this strategy are: (1) detailed geological mapping in relatively small important areas that serve as case studies, (2) regional reconnaissance surveys to assess
variability away from the case studies, (3) monitoring and study of processes active at the sea-floor and their influence on seafloor geology, (4) development and application of scientific concepts that help to predict geological conditions in areas
where data are sparse or absent, (5) continual technological development, and (6) archiving data and samples collected at great expense. Examples of how these approaches are intertwined and yielded past successes are given in this contribution and in
other reviews in this volume. They also serve as a guide to the way ahead. |
| Summary | (Plain Language Summary, not published)
Canada's seas and oceans, once the claim under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea is accepted, will make up more than 42% of the
Canadian territory. Canada has by far the longest coastline in the world. Mapping and understanding the geology of this vast marine area is about 100 years behind the analogous process on land. The key elements of a strategy for understanding this
marine territory, that served well for the last 50 years are: (1) detailed geological mapping in relatively small important areas that serve as case studies, (2) regional reconnaissance surveys to assess variability away from the case studies, (3)
monitoring and study of processes active at the sea-floor and their influence on seafloor geology, (4) development and application of scientific concepts that help to predict geological conditions in areas where data are sparse or absent, (5)
continual technological development, and (6) archiving data and samples collected at great expense. |
| GEOSCAN ID | 296864 |
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