85% of the of the new discoveries for oil and gas extraction projects in 2024 were located in the oceans, known as offshore projects. This goes against repeated scientific warnings and recommendations from institutions—such as the International Energy Agency—to avoid the expansion of new fossil fuel projects to reduce emissions and limit global warming to below 1.5°C. It is now also known that these projects have a negative impact on the ocean.
A study by the initiative Earth Insight -and in partnership with 12 civil society organizations- reveals that offshore fossil fuel projects threaten marine life and the survival of coastal communities.
What the report shows
The Earth Insight’s study analyzed projects of oil, gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) in countries where fossil fuels investments are increasing.
Every offshore project would involve systems of pipelines, ports, shipping routes, export terminals, processing facilities, a lot of complementary aspects that, both on land and on water, would increase the pressure on biodiversity. This includes negative impacts on protected areas, marine mammal areas, and biologically significant areas like coral reefs and whale migration corridors.
Also, they would threaten the local communities whose daily lives depend on fishing, biodiversity tourism, and healthy coastal ecosystems. And who have been taking care of the ocean for centuries.
The analysis was conducted in projects located in Argentina, Alaska, Australia, Cameroon, Indonesia, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico, Norway, Tanzania, and Trinidad & Tobago. Here we focus on two of them.
The cases study in Alaska and Mexico
A liquefied natural gas project has been proposed in Alaska to link the North Slope and Cook Inlet. That would require an 800-mile pipeline and an increasing of tanker traffic by between 40 and 70%.
According to the study, this project would impact negatively on the beluga whale habitat, the salmon fisheries and the indigenous food systems. And would affect the resources and livelihood of 15 coastal Alaska native villages.
Like Alaska, there is a liquefied natural gas project planned in the Gulf of California, one of the world’s most important marine regions.
The project would add tanker traffic, pipelines and gas infrastructure that could generate underwater noise, ship strikes and pollution in the habitat of whales and the critically endangered vaquita.
What the reports urges to do
Far from simply outlining the problem, the report also calls for action from governments, financial institutions, and international bodies.
Among the recommendations, experts warn of the importance of stop granting new licenses, permits, and approvals for offshore and coastal oil, gas, and LNG projects in or near protected areas. They also call for the establishment of legally binding “Fossil Free Zones” in areas of high ecological, cultural, and community importance.
Regarding national and multilateral action, the report urges decision-makers to align their policies with the goal of protecting 30% of marine areas by 2030. This is part of the commitments made by countries at the United Nations Biodiversity Conference in 2024 and which is still in the implementation phase.
“Country commitments to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030 represent a unique opportunity to restrict fossil fuel blocks and concessions in order to uphold the integrity of existing and future Marine Protected Areas, whale and marine mammal corridors, and the health of coral reefs, seagrasses, and mangroves, and the communities who depend on them”, said Tyson Miller, executive director of Earth Insight.
