Golez: I do not believe the Chinese survey ship conducted a harmless scientific research project in the Benham Rise area, contrary to what the Chinese officially announced. I believe it conducted what it is capable of doing to promote China's interest and prejudice Philippine interest namely:
1. Oceanographic survey to determine the characteristics of the undersea, study the thermocline patterns; data on thermoclines are very important for identifying possible hiding areas for submarines, which are of critical importance in future submarine warfare between the First Island Chain and the Second Island Chain.
2. Hydrographic seismic survey to study what could be under the seabed, to determine through sound reflection and refraction possible oil and gas deposits. Conferring the vastness of the Benham Rise area, the likelihood of such deposits is very strong, many times larger than at the Malampaya Facility.
1. Oceanographic survey to determine the characteristics of the undersea, study the thermocline patterns; data on thermoclines are very important for identifying possible hiding areas for submarines, which are of critical importance in future submarine warfare between the First Island Chain and the Second Island Chain.
2. Hydrographic seismic survey to study what could be under the seabed, to determine through sound reflection and refraction possible oil and gas deposits. Conferring the vastness of the Benham Rise area, the likelihood of such deposits is very strong, many times larger than at the Malampaya Facility.
What the Chinese ship did in Benham Rise
By Ellen Tordesillas
April 03, 2017
BENHAM Rise, a 13-million-hectare undersea region off the provinces of Isabela and Aurora which the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) approved in 2009 as part of the Philippine’s extended continental shelf (350 nautical miles from the shores), came into the consciousness of many Filipinos recently with Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana disclosed that Chinese ships had been spotted in the area last year for about three months.
China did not deny it saying their “vessels for marine research did sail across relevant waters to the northeast of Luzon, the Philippines last year, exercising navigation freedoms and the right to innocent passage only, without conducting any other activities or operations.”
Concern over the presence of Chinese ships in Benham Rise turned into shock when President Duterte said he had given the Chinese permission to conduct a survey in Benham Rise.
But no one really knew what kind of survey the Chinese ships did. Lorenzana said he has read a report saying the Chinese could be looking for a spot to place submarines.
Last week, a Chinese newsletter, China Ocean News, carried a news item about what was accomplished by its survey ship, Xiang yang hong 03. Here’s the translation of the news item:
“The Ship “Xiang yang hong 03” has successfully achieved its goal when it completed its task
“On 21 January, the “Xiang Yang Hong 03,” a comprehensive scientific research ship carrying 60 crew members, investigators and samples obtained in the Western Pacific, successfully docked at the Xiamen modern terminal, after the successful completion of its task to conduct sediment and benthic biological investigation in the Western Pacific.
“It is reported that in 26 November 2016, the ship ‘Xiang Yang Hong 03’set sail from Xiamen to implement a national special task - the Western Pacific seabed and benthic organisms survey. After 58 days of voyage and more than 6200 miles of travel to the Western Pacific, it obtained seabed sediment samples in 127 stations, upper sea water suspension sample data in 53 stations and benthic biological samples in 13 stations, the successful completion of the established targets, thus, creating the best record of the task in history. “
The news item showed a picture of “Xiang yang hong 03” docked at Xiamen modern terminal.
I did a quick online research on “benthic organisms survey” and this is what I got from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA Fisheries), Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
“Benthos refers to the community of organisms that lives in, on, or is somehow associated to the bottom of a reef. Given the great variety in the structure of coral reefs worldwide and the complex nature of physical and ecological processes that drive ecosystem changes, it is difficult to rely on a single metric when attempting to evaluate the status and long-term change of reef benthos. Therefore, as part of the Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (Pacific RAMP), the benthic team of the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division (CRED) collects integrated information on benthic species composition (diversity), condition, abundance, size-structure, and distribution of these communities: Algae, Corals, Invertebrates.”
This one I got from an article, “The Value of Benthic Infauna Marine Pollution Monitoring Studies” by Gordon R. Bilyard that appeared in Marine Pollution Bulletin, Great Britain.
It said, “Benthic infauna are superior to many other biological groups that could be monitored (e.g., planktons, fishes, marine birds) because they are sedentary and must adapt to environment stress or perish.
Their responses to sediment contamination facilitate the spatial definition of impacts….Benthic infauna are effective indicators of impacts at higher levels of biological organizations (e.g. community level) because of their importance to overall ecosystem structure and functions.”
China did not deny it saying their “vessels for marine research did sail across relevant waters to the northeast of Luzon, the Philippines last year, exercising navigation freedoms and the right to innocent passage only, without conducting any other activities or operations.”
Concern over the presence of Chinese ships in Benham Rise turned into shock when President Duterte said he had given the Chinese permission to conduct a survey in Benham Rise.
But no one really knew what kind of survey the Chinese ships did. Lorenzana said he has read a report saying the Chinese could be looking for a spot to place submarines.
Last week, a Chinese newsletter, China Ocean News, carried a news item about what was accomplished by its survey ship, Xiang yang hong 03. Here’s the translation of the news item:
“The Ship “Xiang yang hong 03” has successfully achieved its goal when it completed its task
“On 21 January, the “Xiang Yang Hong 03,” a comprehensive scientific research ship carrying 60 crew members, investigators and samples obtained in the Western Pacific, successfully docked at the Xiamen modern terminal, after the successful completion of its task to conduct sediment and benthic biological investigation in the Western Pacific.
“It is reported that in 26 November 2016, the ship ‘Xiang Yang Hong 03’set sail from Xiamen to implement a national special task - the Western Pacific seabed and benthic organisms survey. After 58 days of voyage and more than 6200 miles of travel to the Western Pacific, it obtained seabed sediment samples in 127 stations, upper sea water suspension sample data in 53 stations and benthic biological samples in 13 stations, the successful completion of the established targets, thus, creating the best record of the task in history. “
The news item showed a picture of “Xiang yang hong 03” docked at Xiamen modern terminal.
I did a quick online research on “benthic organisms survey” and this is what I got from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA Fisheries), Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
“Benthos refers to the community of organisms that lives in, on, or is somehow associated to the bottom of a reef. Given the great variety in the structure of coral reefs worldwide and the complex nature of physical and ecological processes that drive ecosystem changes, it is difficult to rely on a single metric when attempting to evaluate the status and long-term change of reef benthos. Therefore, as part of the Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (Pacific RAMP), the benthic team of the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division (CRED) collects integrated information on benthic species composition (diversity), condition, abundance, size-structure, and distribution of these communities: Algae, Corals, Invertebrates.”
This one I got from an article, “The Value of Benthic Infauna Marine Pollution Monitoring Studies” by Gordon R. Bilyard that appeared in Marine Pollution Bulletin, Great Britain.
It said, “Benthic infauna are superior to many other biological groups that could be monitored (e.g., planktons, fishes, marine birds) because they are sedentary and must adapt to environment stress or perish.
Their responses to sediment contamination facilitate the spatial definition of impacts….Benthic infauna are effective indicators of impacts at higher levels of biological organizations (e.g. community level) because of their importance to overall ecosystem structure and functions.”
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