Deep Seabed Mining
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As the future of seafloor mining is debated this week, here are five things you need to know about the risks and rewards of extracting precious metals and minerals from the ocean.
[ More ]A scientific expedition has been launched from the UK to explore the mining of rich metal deposits on the deep ocean floor, which are the focus of a new gold rush around the world.
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Pew Environment advocates for a precautionary approach to the emerging deep seabed mining industry, arguing that "[l]arge, ecologically important areas of the seabed should be closed to mineral extraction, and precautionary standards must be adopted by the ISA to minimize environmental damage where mining does occur."
[ More ]Although several countries, including Saudi Arabia and Sudan, have recently shown renewed interest in tapping mineral resources on the deep seabed, the costs of operating in the difficult environment deep waters pose will likely preserve subsea basins for a little while longer.
[ More ]The International Seabed Authority has signed its first exploration contract for seabed mining for 2016. The deal was signed with the U.K. Seabed Resources Limited (UKSRL) and involves a 15-year contract for the exploration of polymetallic nodules in the eastern part of the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone in the Pacific Ocean west of Mexico.
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On Friday, China passed the country's first law on deep seafloor mining. The law is designed to protect the maritime environment and ensure sustainable exploitation of its mineral resources.
[ More ]An interview with the director of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services on India's plans for taking advantage of mineral deposits in the Indian ocean.
[ More ]The author surveys the emerging deep sea mining industry and argues that now is the time to engage and regulate the practice to ensure "the same industrial paradigm that destroyed much of the terrestrial ecosystems of our home planet to do the same in the deep sea."
[ More ]With land-based mineral sources in decline, the move to mine seabeds is pushing scientists, regulators, and mining companies to collaborate on frameworks and strategies for mining the seabed responsibly.
[ More ]The era of deep seabed mining appears to be dawning, fueled by technological advances in robotics and dwindling land-based deposits. Rising demand for copper, cobalt, gold and the rare earth elements vital in manufacturing smartphones and other high-tech products is causing a prospecting rush to the dark seafloor deep beneath the waves.
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By ratifying the treaty, the U.S. will not instantaneously regain its former influence, but it will be a huge step in the right direction compared to its static approach for the past three decades.187 Upon ratification, the U.S. will first regain its seat on the ISA’s Council.188 In addition, the U.S. will gain “important veto rights over distribution of any future revenues from deep seabed exploitation to national liberation groups.”189
Not only will the U.S. regain a seat on the ISA’s Council, but also it will have the ability to participate in the elections of judges for the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea,190 members of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS),191 and other arms of the ISA.192 This is a critical opportunity for the U.S. to place its own representatives in key areas of the ISA to help restore U.S. presence in vital matters concerning the Area.193 Furthermore, by reasserting itself as an authoritative component in the ISA, the U.S. will be better able to sway other nations in the issuing of decisions by the ISA.194 By taking this route versus obtaining a “veto” power over all ISA decisions, the U.S. will be more respected by Member States rather than being seen as a haughty and stubborn Western power as characterized by Molitor.195
Lockheed Martin has already sent American jobs outside the U.S. in order to obtain the benefits from ISA Member States.232 As 2018 approaches, the eyes of the world will turn its focus on Nautilus’ attempt to successfully operate the world’s first deep seabed mining operation.233 The success of the Solwara 1 Project will usher in a new era of opportunity for all, excluding non-ratifying States like the U.S.234 The probable response by other U.S. companies would be to follow Lockheed Martin’s footsteps, triggering the trend of utilizing foreign subsidiaries to operate deep seabed mining businesses, to the detriment of the United States.235