Building a nation at or near the Equator…

[Lord_Scorpio1969Subscriber]

I don’t know if I’m just missing the topic here or if it hasn’t been broached before now. I am curious about placing ourselves at or above/below (50-100 nm) the Equator. I know about some of the good and some of the bad.

Good: calm waters most year round; can build almost down to the water level without fear of being ‘flooded out’; mostly out of the way of trade routes; good weather for both solar and wind turbines;

Bad: Some tempatures are too high for comfort; calm waters most year round (will have to do somthing to make it useful for our own growing requirements, OTECs?); mostly out of the way of trade routes (if we decided to trade with others);

Some are good and bad but I wanted to know if a surface floating community would be better placed here with the proper protection from the elements (wind and sun mostly) or more of a bad idea.

Any information or even a pointer in the right direction to this topic if it’s already been touched on would be greatly appreciated.

Bill

[vincecateSubscriber]

A steastead is probably not going to move fast through the water. A Gyre with no shallow water seems a good place to be. We can sort of drift in a big circle but use kites and sea anchors so that we drift in a controlled way and don’t bump into each other. With a multi-string kite a computer could control which way it pulls you (within some angle of downwind). We would not need to expend fuel or electricity to hold a position, or have expensive anchors going all the way to the bottom. Yet we should not be in danger of drifting into land.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyre

My personal favorite is the North Atlantic gyre also called the Sargasso Sea.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sargasso_sea

[admiral-dotySubscriber]

The equator is my main area of interest, see http://seasteading.org/interact/forums/community/dreaming-/-crazy-ideas-/-speculation/floating-intercontinental-bridge .

[PatriKey Master]

Yeah, the equator is definitely worth considering in order to avoid big waves. But my favorite initial business idea is a hotel/resort, and so we need to be close to our customers. But if you’re making a true new community, the equator definitely has some advantages.

[ShouriSubscriber]

Even for a hotel resort isnt equator an ideal place?…. lets take this point for example: lagoonlike shallowness just north of kirimaki(by 400 kms or so as i know, its in high seas too) You can set tours to all the lagoons around and its not really faar away from hawaii (not close either tho)There are many people around wandering in pacific with their yachts, with a little advertisement it may rally become profitable… Personally its the best spot for me, if u guys ever achieve what you are after, i would gladly fund my own module/residence construction. Ofcourse i wouldnt do that if there isnt already a society i m fond of is already doing it. Its even ideal for a micronation thingie around there. tho i dont know if they are world heritage areas. (honestly, the idea behind world heritage areas is really noble but there must be better regulations for these stuff, like a design proved to be 100% ecofriendly must be permitted to permanently anchor perhaps(!?))

[xnsSubscriber]

Since we’re on this topic, I figured I’d let you guys know I intend to stick an island in the ocean at 0.00ºN 90.00ºE. Right on the equator, South of the Bay of Bengal and West of Sumatra. So.. if anyone else has plans for that region, shoo! I called it first :p

[wohl1917Subscriber]

The O.C.R.’s Indian Ocean Territorial Surface is at or about 90.30.00E, 30.30.00S of you. The Republic doesn’t claim an EEZ or Territorial Waters just the right of its Citizen Captains, Subject Citizens and Subjects to peaceably assemble, live and exercise the Rights of Sovereign Government sharing in the common heritage of mankind, the sea.

< http://ocr.wikia.com/wiki/Oceanic_Citizens_Republic_Wiki>

[xnsSubscriber]

So that puts you… 56.4km south of us yes? Greetings Neighbour-land! Can the people of my, as-yet-un-named-country offer you the services of our as-yet-un-build port and airport?

[wohl1917Subscriber]

Actually, we would be just over 2000 miles away, but I’m sure there will be goods and services enough to provide for everyone…

< http://ocr.wikia.com/wiki/Oceanic_Citizens_Republic_Wiki>

[xnsSubscriber]

Ah! Pardon my misreading, I thought you meant 0.30º south of us :p

So at 30º that puts you slightly north of the broken ridge then. Strikes me as a rather strange location no? You’re exposed to storms that far off the equator and I’d imagine it gets quite cold there every now and again.

King Shannon of the Constitutional Monarchy of Logos.

[wohl1917Subscriber]

You’re right but since there is no land, anywhere on the planet that is not claimed by some country somewhere, somehow to be independent and stay independent you’ve got to be ‘out there’. Let’s say you went to an uninhabited island or built an island inside the EEZ of any country and set up shop, the moment you were discovered the Macro-Nation who claimed that bit of dirt, no matter how small the bit or how small the nation, would come and run you off or make you pay taxes, fines, permits, fees and licenses for the privilege of living there. That’s why The Oceanic Citizens Republic’s Home Territory is One Square Nautical Mile located at 10.00.00S to 10.01.00S at 121.34.00W to 121.35.00W, over section ‘E’ of the International SeaLand Enterprises (ISLE) claim of September 1975. The ‘land’ it’s ‘over’ is 14000+/- feet under water and it’s mine, all mine and I own it with free, clear internationally ignored title. The Republic makes ‘extra-territorial surface claims’ that are equally close and/or distant form everything and everybody else. It is an unfortunate reality of the world we live in that if any part of the Republic were located any closer to any country or any landmass of any size, inhabited or not, claimed by any country, maintaining its independence would be impossibility. The Macro-Nations jealously guard what they see as ‘theirs’ and they see everything as theirs including us, you and me. As it is, our Republic may not survive its first Seastation. If we can make it work, ‘they’ will more than likely come to claim it and us as ‘their’ property and ‘their’ citizens and subjugate us no matter where we are!

< http://ocr.wikia.com/wiki/Oceanic_Citizens_Republic_Wiki>

[OCEANOPOLISSubscriber]

Lets say that 1 sq. mile @ the depth of 14,000.00 ft its all yours. I dont know how you got it or how it end up being yours. And I dont care. What I dont get is how the “Republic makes ‘extra-territorial surface claims”. By what process of rationale or under what authority this claim is valid? Why the area of ocean 14,000.00 feet above your property is yours too?

In fact, that area is in international waters and it belong to mankind, and cannot be claimed by any nation (that includes a micro-nation too)according to UNCLOS.

[wohl1917Subscriber]

The dirt, the sea-bottom itself, was claimed by the International Sea-land Enterprises (ISLE) in September 1975, prior to the existence of UNCLOS. Ex post facto law are not legal by international treaty and the claim, while not acknowledged, has never been disputed. I purchased 1 square nautical mile of ocean floor. Just as you do not own the air above your house, I do not ‘own’ the water above my land but under UNCLOS I have the right to use the sea just as anyone else does. It’s like if you had a tethered balloon on your land you could let it out as high as you wanted to or in this case drop my hook so to speak. If the water were shallower, I could build a tower to the surface, just the same! I chose to create the Oceanic Citizens Republic there and because I’m not getting any younger and may never get there, I chose to have the Republic make ‘claim’ to points, locations, spots on the high-seas where Citizens of the Republic can sail too that are closer to where they actually live. The Republic does not exist ‘there’, it exists in the hearts and minds of its Citizens and on any vessel that flies the flag. As for the validity of the claim… Well, let’s see: According to Article 1 of the 1933 Montevideo Convention on Rights and Duties of States, the Republic itself exists independent of recognition and because it, through me, owns actual land, property in the temporal world, it exists. I’ve already covered ISLE and since the Republic makes no claims in conflict with UNCLOS, there you have it. In all actuality, my Republic has more ‘legal’ foundation that the United States had when the founding fathers signed the Decoration of Independence!

< http://ocr.wikia.com/wiki/Oceanic_Citizens_Republic_Wiki>

[ShouriSubscriber]

By the way is Saya da Malha has any heritage site issues(i know there are artifical reef projects ongoing but are they under protection?)? And does anyone have detailed info about the area, i couldnt find a detailed report on windspeed, wave height, I only have reports on ecology(not detailed), geological surveys, dephts, ocean currents and rain&weather condtion statistics excluding windpeed in detail. Also if any of you have a copy of a document which mentions Mauritius’ claim over the area in detail (not only autopia area, or the fishing zone thingie about the saya da malha but also their eez borders stated in their government papers[mostly every country has different eez borders in their documents than the one accepted by internationally]) i ll be most grateful…

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