Blue economy holds out a basket of opportunities

The blue economy, which involves the sustainable use of marine resources for economic development, offers a basket of opportunities for clean equitable growth in both traditional and emerging sectors such as fisheries, aquaculture, tourism and energy. According to geologists, the Bay of Bengal holds large untapped gas reserves in the country's exclusive economic zone. The country also has substantial reserves of coal, with several coal mines operating in its north-western region.
The government has formed a Blue Economy Cell (BEC) to explore, conserve and manage mineral and natural resources within the Bay of Bengal region of Bangladesh.
A member of the cell, Commodore Abdullah Al Mamun Chowdhury, told The Independent that the blue economy could play an important role in poverty alleviation, food security and combating climate change. The Bay of Bengal will soon become a hub of economic activities, he said.
Energy, minerals, fishery, aquaculture and tourism will be priority areas of the cell, he added.
Speaking of the challenges, Mamun said: “We still do not have the equipment for deep sea fishing."
“We need to purchase a ship equipped with modern technology to carry out geological surveys in deep coastal areas,” he noted.The government has planned to discuss the purchase of such a ship with the Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company (BAPEX), he said.
In 2014, Bangladesh and India resolved their maritime boundary dispute at the International
Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Since then, the the government has been focusing on developing the blue economy.
Prof. Badrul Imam, a teacher of geologist at Dhaka University, told The Independent that the Bay of Bengal has enormous resources, especially in terms of energy, that have been lying untapped.
 “After winning the maritime boundary from Myanmar, there has been no extraction of oil and gas in the area,” he said.
Badrul Imam blamed bureaucratic inertia for the delay in commencing exploration in blue economy sectors such as energy, minerals, fishery, aquaculture and tourism. “The Bay of Bengal has large untapped gas reserves in Bangladesh’s exclusive economic zone. If we can tap even a small part of this reserve, the country's economy would change dramatically,” he said.
Bangladesh resolved a maritime boundary dispute with Myanmar in 2012 and with India in 2014, getting the sovereign authority over 0.12 million square kilometres in the Bay of Bengal.
Talking to The Independent, Dr Mohammad Tamim, a teacher of petroleum and mineral resources engineering at BUET,  said offshore exploration of energy, such as oil and gas, has come to a standstill at present. “Since the global slump in oil prices, no energy company is ready to take the risk of oil exploration lest they should fail  to recover their investment,” he explained.
He also said the extraction of non-renewable resources, such as petroleum, natural gas or even water, is very expensive for a country like Bangladesh. “Trade with other countries will be a pivotal opportunity for Bangladesh. Big ships can get access through the administrative process and easily come to our economic zone to conduct the export and import business," he added.
Normally, an economic zone stretches from the offshore to 200 nautical miles into the deep sea, he said.

Blue economy holds out a basket of opportunities

The blue economy, which involves the sustainable use of marine resources for economic development, offers a basket of opportunities for clean equitable growth in both traditional and emerging sectors such as fisheries, aquaculture, tourism and energy. According to geologists, the Bay of Bengal holds large untapped gas reserves in the countrys exclusive economic zone. The country also has substantial reserves of coal, with several coal mines operating in its north-western region. The government has formed a Blue Economy Cell (BEC) to explore, conserve and manage mineral and natural resources within the Bay of Bengal region of Bangladesh. A member of the cell, Commodore Abdullah Al Mamun Chowdhury, told The Independent that the blue economy could play an important role in poverty alleviation, food security and combating climate change. The Bay of Bengal will soon become a hub of economic activities, he said. Energy, minerals, fishery, aquaculture and tourism will be priority areas of the cell, he added. Speaking of the challenges, Mamun said: We still do not have the equipment for deep sea fishing. We need to purchase a ship equipped with modern technology to carry out geological surveys in deep coastal areas, he noted.The government has planned to discuss the purchase of such a ship with the Bangladesh Petroleum Exploration and Production Company (BAPEX), he said. In 2014, Bangladesh and India resolved their maritime boundary dispute at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea. Since then, the the government has been focusing on developing the blue economy. Prof. Badrul Imam, a teacher of geologist at Dhaka University, told The Independent that the Bay of Bengal has enormous resources, especially in terms of energy, that have been lying untapped. After winning the maritime boundary from Myanmar, there has been no extraction of oil and gas in the area, he said. Badrul Imam blamed bureaucratic inertia for the delay in commencing exploration in blue economy sectors such as energy, minerals, fishery, aquaculture and tourism. The Bay of Bengal has large untapped gas reserves in Bangladeshs exclusive economic zone. If we can tap even a small part of this reserve, the countrys economy would change dramatically, he said. Bangladesh resolved a maritime boundary dispute with Myanmar in 2012 and with India in 2014, getting the sovereign authority over 0.12 million square kilometres in the Bay of Bengal. Talking to The Independent, Dr Mohammad Tamim, a teacher of petroleum and mineral resources engineering at BUET, said offshore exploration of energy, such as oil and gas, has come to a standstill at present. Since the global slump in oil prices, no energy company is ready to take the risk of oil exploration lest they should fail to recover their investment, he explained. He also said the extraction of non-renewable resources, such as petroleum, natural gas or even water, is very expensive for a country like Bangladesh. Trade with other countries will be a pivotal opportunity for Bangladesh. Big ships can get access through the administrative process and easily come to our economic zone to conduct the export and import business, he added. Normally, an economic zone stretches from the offshore to 200 nautical miles into the deep sea, he said.