Ghana has been a partner in the Nansen programme since 1981 for development of sustainable fisheries. A few years ago, rich oil resources were found on Ghana’s continental shelf. Based on the experience from Norwegian waters, a cooperation with Ghana was initiated – to establish baselines for the environmental conditions in the oceans prior to the start of the offshore oil exploitation in Ghana.

The coastal model NorKyst-800 is a computer model that simulates variables such as currents, salinity and temperature along the whole Norwegian coast, at an 800 metre spatial resolution and at high temporal resolution. NorKyst-800 has been developed by the Institute of Marine Research, in collaboration with the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and NIVA.

In recent years, the cod farming industry has faced a steep uphill battle on account of poor profitability and, to some extent, a bad reputation due to a  large number of escapes. Meanwhile, the biological conditions for successful cod farming are constantly improving, and the market prospects are good if production costs can be kept down.

The seas and oceans have absorbed more than a quarter of the CO2 released by industry. Ocean acidification occurs when such amounts of  CO2 dissolve in the water and are converted into acid (carbonic acid).