| Popis: |
In 2005 TOTAL E&P obtained from the government of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania two concessions to explore the hydrocarbon potential of the Taoudenni Basin. The unusually big size of these concessions was only comparable to the challenge of exploring this virtually unknown basin, in a harsh and remote desert environment without human settlements. TOTAL E&P acquired between 2006 and 2007 3260 km of 2D seismic, in a grid that covered the extent of the concessions. In agreement with the UNESCO's World Heritage Convention, and under the patronage of the Mauritanian Institute of Scientific Research (IMRS), TOTAL E&P engaged a group of archeologists to guarantee the protection of any archeological vestige that could be present in the operations field. For the 14 months of the seismic data acquisition period, all the operations were preceded by the archeological scouting, in charge of preserving the archeological sites and artifacts from the men and machines dedicated to seismic acquisition. Going beyond this preservation effort, the archeologists have seized the opportunity to make a thorough study of this part of the Taoudenni bassin, never accessed before by scientists. More than 3000 archeological sites have been described along the seismic lines, and studied using a regionally consistent approach. The extremely rich spatial information, has allowed to statistically analyze palaeo-climate evolution and patterns of human settlement and activity during the prehistory. As part of its Corporate Social Responsibility program, TOTAL E&P launched a project of valorization of the archeological heritage, based on the results of the archeological survey. Thanks to this successful association of industrial and archeological activities, and to the active commitment of the Mauritanian authorities, a completely new archaeological province has been revealed, and completes a previously existing gap in the scientific knowledge of the Saharan prehistory. Beyond the success of an extremely challenging seismic survey, and the important archeological discoveries made, this experience represents an important achievement in terms of sustainable industrial activity, and gives a good example on how industrial goals and environmental constraints can be combined to obtain mutual and long term benefits. |
