Ocean wealth valued at US$24 trillion, but sinking fast | WWF.
According to the National Ocean Service, our oceans hold some 20 million tons* of gold, suspended in normal seawater.
And Ocean-based economic opportunities for which markets don't exist yet, such as marine ecosystems services, are estimated to be worth at least $24 trillion.
In recent years, the ocean has produced US $2.5 trillion in goods and services each year, and the asset value of the ocean has been estimated at US $24 trillion.
Australian Exclusive Economic Zone
Australia's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is one of the largest in the world with the total marine area of around 10 million square kilometres which is considerably larger than the 7.69 million square kilometres of the Australian mainland States and Territories.
Who owns the ocean? No one owns the ocean. The seas and oceans are considered to be a 'global commons', which means that they belong to everyone and no one at the same time. However, countries do have the right to claim 'exclusive economic zones' (EEZs) up to 200 nautical miles from their coastlines.
Oceans feed us, regulate our climate, and generate most of the oxygen we breathe. They also serve as the foundation for much of the world's economy, supporting sectors from tourism to fisheries to international shipping.
The world's 12th largest economy
Strong growth in 2021 solidified Australia's position as the world's 12th largest economy in 2021. Nominal GDP was around A$2.2 trillion (US$1.6 trillion) in 2021. Australia is home to just 0.3% of the world's population, but accounts for 1.7% of the global economy.
A recent study estimates that the world's oceans need annual investments of 175 billion US dollars in order to implement the UN Sustainable Development Goal “Life under water” until 2030.
We do know that gold makes up about four parts per billion of the earth's crust. What we don't know, however, is precisely how much gold is still out there. The WGC estimates that there are 54,000 tonnes of “below-ground gold reserves” waiting to be mined.
That's a potential 700 trillion dollars!
The Ocean has 20 million tons of gold in it. That's worth a potential 700 trillion dollars! There has unsurprisingly been a lot of scammers that have sold equipment (and been granted patents) that claim to extract gold this way.
The short answer to the questions posed in this article title is: Yes! gold traces have indeed been identified within the lunar soil. Back in October 2009, NASA conducted a mission called LCROSS, which involved crashing a booster rocket into the Moon at nearly 6,000 miles per hour.
All of us own the oceans, and yet none of us do. It's a conundrum. For centuries, beginning with the Age of Exploration when ships were developed that could convey humans across the globe, the governments that represent people like you, the oceans' owner, agreed that no one owned the oceans.
Rivers of pollution flow into the ocean every day, with little sign of slowing down. Marine animals and birds now regularly eat plastic, and so do humans. It is estimated that by 2050 there could be more plastic in the sea than fish. As the plastic piles up, fish disappear.
By 2030, they projected, 55 percent of the world's oceans will experience changes in more than one of these factors — temperature and pH, most commonly — beyond the range of natural variability. By 2050, this number rises to 86 percent. The researchers focused on areas where multiple changes are occurring at once.
Australians collected a higher median wealth per adult than anywhere else in the world at $US273,900 ($A390,870) – nearly three times the median wealth of $US93,270 ($A133,100) in the US. Australia was followed on the rich list by Belgium and New Zealand, with the US trailing behind at number 18.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, Australian Government gross debt has increased from $534.4 billion in March 2019 to $894.9 billion as of 28 October 2022.
Among all the states and territories in Australia, New South Wales is considered the richest state. It has the largest economy, a diverse range of industries, and a higher-than-average income, which contribute to its status as the wealthiest state.
The Seven Seas include the Arctic, North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Pacific, South Pacific, Indian, and Southern oceans. The exact origin of the phrase 'Seven Seas' is uncertain, although there are references in ancient literature that date back thousands of years.
Ocean salt primarily comes from rocks on land and openings in the seafloor. Salt in the ocean comes from two sources: runoff from the land and openings in the seafloor. Rocks on land are the major source of salts dissolved in seawater. Rainwater that falls on land is slightly acidic, so it erodes rocks.
The ocean covers more than 70 percent of the surface of our planet.
The deepest place in the ocean measures 10,935 meters (35,876 feet) and is found in the Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench, at a place called Challenger Deep.
Seriously, activities within a nation's territorial waters are controlled by its government. They don't "sell" acreage of sea, but they do license (or prohibit) certain activities like oil drilling.
Around 20 million tonnes of gold can be found there! According to estimates by the US National Oceanic Service, the gold from the depths of the oceans is so diluted that there is only one gram of this precious yellow metal for every 100 million metric tons of water.