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Global Governance of the Oceans

Risks to seafloor cables and international protection

  • 3 things to know
  • Component 2

Overview

Commonest cause of cable damage, turbidity current and oldest treaty protecting submarine cables.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

What is the commonest cause of cable damage?

Numbers

How many cable faults occur each year?

Key term

How is a broken cable repaired?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    What is the commonest cause of cable damage?

    Model answer

    Trawl gear and ship anchors cause most cable faults. Human activity accounts for around two thirds of all breaks.

  2. 2

    How many cable faults occur each year?

    Model answer

    Between 100 and 200 cable faults are repaired each year worldwide. Most cause no visible disruption, because traffic reroutes automatically.

  3. 3

    How is a broken cable repaired?

    Model answer

    A cable ship grapples the severed ends from the seabed and splices in a new section. Repairs can take days or weeks depending on weather and permits.

  4. 4

    How can an earthquake damage submarine cables?

    Model answer

    Seabed shaking can break a cable directly. The greater danger is a submarine landslide triggered by the quake.

  5. 5

    What happened off Taiwan in 2006?

    Model answer

    The Hengchun earthquake of December 2006 triggered turbidity currents that cut around eight cables. Internet and telephone services across East Asia were disrupted for weeks.

  6. 6

    How can a single event isolate an island country?

    Model answer

    The Hunga Tonga eruption in January 2022 severed Tonga's only international cable. The islands lost most internet and telephone contact for about five weeks.

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