Paxos and Hydrocarbon Deposits, Past Oil Exploration and Research; Environmental Impact; The Ionian Sea Block 2; Corfu

Edward Lear's Paxos

With recent talk of renewed oil/ hydrocarbons exploration in the Ionian Sea and in Epirus, I am reminded of the distress and anxiety caused to many residents of the island of Paxos (Paxoi) thirty or forty years ago.

As someone who contemplated the possibility of building on the island in those days, all my planning was halted when AGIP began thumping the ground for seismic soundings; they made the very earth tremble all around the beautiful island, which I had come to care for deeply.

Bogdanatika is a village not far from Gaios, the main port of Paxos. Building permission was obtained back then for the construction of a small house in the village of Bogdanatika, but AGIP 's plans to explore and to drill for oil (and to use the nearby football pitch for its base camp), put paid to any such romantic and nature-loving ideas.

I did not share the optimism expressed by Sotiris Kostopoulos in 1984:

I could agree with the first two sentences above:

But even the mere threat of such disruptive and destructive exploration had an environmental impact...in spite of promises about modern technologies.

Some shocking revelations here:

Oil pioneer Michael Johnson says Greece has plenty of oil, too, Neo Magazine, May 1, 2016

http://www.neomagazine.com/2016/05/oil-pioneer-michael-johnson-says-greece-has-plenty-of-oil-too/

Some online background research (for specialists, I am unsure how relevant these papers may be):

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236629896_PRELIMINARY_STUDY_ON_THE_SLUMP_STRUCTURES_OF_THE_EARLY_OLIGOCENE_SEDIMENTS_OF_THE_PRE-APULIAN_ZONE_ANTIPAXOS_ISLAND_NORTH-WESTERN_GREECE

Abstract

"A spectacular slump is observed in the Alpine sediments of the Antipaxos Island (Pre-Apulian zone, Western Greece). It can be followed in a zone of about 2000 m, in the eastern coast of the island. The slumped unit exposure length extends for more than 200 m, and is directly overlain and underlain by undeformed strata. The slump has an average thickness of 15 m and is composed, as the surrounding undeformed units, of calcareous mudstones and fine-grained calcareous sandstones. Synsedimentary folds that very often are transformed to contorted beds affect slump sediments. Fold and contorted bed axes present a NNW-SSE direction, coinciding with the general direction of the Pre-Apulian zone. Slump and overlain/underlain undeformed sediments originate from the flux of clastic mainly pelagic/neritic biogenic particles, emanating from turbidity currents. More than 50 samples have been collected and analyzed for calcareous nannofossil content. All samples were featured by the contemporaneous presence of abundant nannofossil flora implying the biostratigraphic correlation with the NP23 nannofossil biozone. The biostratigraphic assignment places the slump and the surrounding sediments to the Early Oligocene. As the Pre-Apulian zone corresponds to the slope between the Apulian Platform and the Ionian Basin, the presence of the slump is directly related to the same age sloping and tectonic mobility of this domain. The Antipaxos turbidites sediments are well integrated to the flysch deposition of the external Hellenide foreland basin system".

CROP PROJECT (transcrustal seismic exploration of the Mediterranean and Italy, including Paxos, pages 545-547)

Intended readership:Geoscientists, petroleum explorers, geothermal explorers, natural resources exploiters, soil engineers, soil safety and territorial planning dealers.

CROP Project: Deep Seismic Exploration of the Central Mediterranean and Italy, edited by I.R. Finetti

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=DiwoyNXSrS8C&pg=PA547&lpg=PA547&dq=Paxos,+AGIP&source=bl&ots=BNqajpH-h6&sig=T3QPHY2jsvSkIFCK02GZpRF2hBs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiQjMSN_P7XAhUJK8AKHUx-CLEQ6AEIUTAJ#v=onepage&q=Paxos%2C%20AGIP&f=false

Table of Contents

Paper on Sicily (pdf)

The new Ionian Sea Block 2: "Exploration will take place at block 2 which is located 30 km west of Corfu. It will last eight years, with an extension option", Greek Reporter


On Block 2, from HHRM

EXPLORATION: New oil source rocks cut in Greek Ionian basin (Oil and Gas Journal, 2/12/ 1996)
Vassilis Karakitsios University of Athens Athens, Nickos Rigakis Public Petroleum Corp. Athens

Out of the frying pan, into the fire? From Paxos to Zagori

Albania President Blocks Talks on Sea Border with Greece, Balkan Insight, 20 February 2018

Over in the Aegean (Updates):

Eastern Mediterranean may be scene of first conflict of 2018 - Al Monitor

Research ship harassed by Turkish coast guard, eKathimerini

Greek-Turkish tension in Aegean reaches highest point in years, The New Athenian (update 13.2.2018)