Ocean Nourishment™ technology is based on more than 14 years of research and development led by Professor Ian S.F. Jones, a chartered professional engineer, internationally recognised in the fields of oceanography and climate change. Over the last 10 years Ian has been the main champion and is one of the inventors of Ocean Nourishment™ technology. Ian is a Founding Director of ONC and has authored over 80 technical papers in international journals and three books. In 2007, Ian was inducted into the "Leading Engineers of the World" for his work on Ocean Nourishment™.

All countries will potentially benefit from Ocean Nourishment through improved climate security. The more direct benefits of ocean nourishment will be associated with the increased production of low cost fish (wet weight) to host countries. Host countries would also benefit from major infrastructure related investment and may also be eligible to claim carbon credits on an ongoing basis. Countries that have a low per capita income and malnourished populations are likely to benefit most.

The Ocean Nourishment™ process is suitable to areas of the ocean deficient in nitrogen (approximately 70% of the ocean). The process is only applicable to deep ocean sites and is not suitable for shallow bays or coastal waters. Other factors that influence site selection include the distance to the continental shelf, seabed bathymetry, upper ocean temperatures, ocean circulation, dissolved oxygen concentration, location of marine protected areas, chlorophyll content and abundance of fish larvae.

The idea of enhancing the marine food chain to increase the oceanic storage of carbon is not new, with a number of options being proposed over recent years, including iron fertilisation. The differences between Ocean Nourishment™ and iron fertilisation are shown below:

Ocean Nourishment™	Iron Fertilisation
Replicates deep ocean nutrient upwelling	Simulates nutrients from dust storms
Urea and macronutrients	Iron particles
Suitable in nitrogen limited regions of the ocean	Suitable in iron limited regions of the ocean
Sequestration time of many hundreds of years	Sequestration times of 50-500 years

The capacity of the ocean to utilise carbon dioxide is much greater than the atmosphere. The waste product of using fossil fuel is, at present, dumped in the atmosphere where it is contributing to climate change as well as rising ocean acidity. With Ocean Nourishment™ the carbon dioxide is converted to high quality protein and the carbon dioxide that cannot be used in fish production is added to the natural stores of carbon in the deep ocean.

Locations suitable for Ocean Nourishment™ research are carefully selected, including the identification and protection of environmentally sensitive areas. Careful planning and sophisticated environmental monitoring programs will be implemented in all ONC operations to ensure that potential negative impacts on the environment are minimised. In addition, our R&D program will be reviewed and independently assessed by recognised scientists and research institutions. This will provide third party endorsement of our methods and approach to marine research. Future commercial scale Ocean Nourishment™ operations will be subject to local regulations and appropriate international agreements.

Coastal pollution is often caused by run off of fertilisers from land based agricultural activities and can result in excess weed growth and fish death. Ocean Nourishment™ is only applicable to deep ocean sites and is not suitable for shallow bays or coastal waters. Ocean Nourishment™ is designed to either increase productivity in nutrient deficient areas of the ocean, mimicking natural upwellings or expand the existing upwelling areas by nourishing adjacent areas in the open ocean.