Polar seas Polar seas Polar seas is a collective term for the Arctic Ocean (about 4-5 percent of Earth's oceans) and the southern part of the Southern Ocean (south of Antarctic Convergence, about 10 percent of Earth's oceans). In the coldest years, sea ice can cover around 13 percent of the Earth's total surface at its maximum, but out of phase in the two hemispheres. The polar seas contain a huge biome with many organisms. Among the species that inhabit various polar seas and surrounding land areas are polar bear, reindeer (caribou), muskox, wolverine, ermine, lemming, Arctic hare, Arctic ground squirrel, whale,
Beaufort Sea Pipeline, but is limiting regular commercial production at Mackenzie River deposits. For example, the Amauligak Project was started soon after the discovery of the field. In September 1985, the tanker "Gulf Beaufort" has transported of crude oil to Japan, which was the first shipment of oil from the Arctic deposits. However, the project has stalled after that. In July 2017, the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management approved a plan to allow Eni, an Italian multinational oil and gas company, to drill four oil exploration wells on Spy Island, one of four artificial islands in the Beaufort Sea. Stan Rogers