| Summary: | The deep ocean is, by far, the planet’s largest biome and holds a wealth of potential natural assets. Most of the ocean lies beyond national jurisdiction and hence is the responsibility of us all. Human exploitation of the deep ocean is rapidly increasing, becoming more visible to many through the popular media. The scientific literature of deep-sea exploitation and its actual and potential effects has also rapidly expanded as a direct function of this increased national and global interest in deep-sea resources, both biological (e.g. fisheries, genetic resources) and non-biological (e.g. minerals, oil, gas, methane hydrate). At the same time there is a growing interest in deep-sea contamination (including plastics), with many such studies featured in high-profile scientific journals and covered by global media outlets. Finally, climate change is affecting even the deepest regions of our oceans and is a major priority for the international scientific and political agendas. However, there is currently no comprehensive integration of information about resource extraction, pollution and effects of climate change and these topics are only superficially covered in classic textbooks on deep-sea biology. The human race is at a pivotal point in potentially benefitting from the deep ocean’s natural resources and this concise and accessible work provides an account of past explorations and exploitations of the deep ocean, a present understanding of its natural capital and how this may be exploited sustainably for the benefit of humankind whilst maintaining its ecological integrity. The book gives a comprehensive account of geological and physical processes, ecology and biology, exploitation, management, and conservation.
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