Title: Offshore freshwater: A resource to address water scarcity

Abstract

Many people are not aware that vast quantities of freshened groundwater lie untapped in continental shelves around the world. Primarily emplaced during the last glacial maximum when sea levels were much lower, offshore freshened groundwater (OFG) is freshest close to shore and more brackish further from the coastline. Due to the timing of emplacement, OFG reserves are not deep and thus could be accessed fairly easily through conventional drilling or pipelines from shore. The pace of climate change is increasing, and its impact on the hydrological cycle is producing more extreme droughts and water scarcity. As human populations surge, more water will be required for basic needs and for agriculture, and new sources of freshwater will have to be secured. While the current low cost of land-based freshwater serves as a disincentive to invest in the necessary infrastructure to extract, treat and distribute offshore freshwater, coastal cities parched by climate changes and possessing nearby OFG reserves may be willing to make the required capital investments. At that time, questions regarding rights to ownership and utilization of the water will doubtless be raised.The objectives of this presentation are to inform listeners about the existence and nature of OFG and to explain how existing governance rules will apply to a new resource. The presentation will summarize the results of scientific sampling and modelling and the applicable governance regimes before concluding that development of OFG will begin in the near future, that the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea will determine ownership rights for coastal nations, and that rights to transboundary reserves will probably follow the pattern of joint development crafted by the hydrocarbon industry.