. Earth Science News .
WATER WORLD
Conservation meet mulls moratorium on deep sea mining
By Laure FILLON
Marseille (AFP) Sept 6, 2021

The world's top conservation forum will vote this week on whether to recommend a moratorium on deep sea mining, with scientists warning that ecosystems degraded while dredging the ocean floor 5,000 metres below the waves could take decades or longer to heal.

The proposed ban is among a score of measures deemed too controversial to be decided remotely ahead of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Congress, meeting through Saturday in Marseille.

A "yes" vote by IUCN members -- some 1,400 national agencies, NGOs and indigenous groups -- is a commitment "to support and implement a moratorium on deep seabed mining".

The measure also recommends greater oversight of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), an intergovernmental body that regulates the extraction of precious minerals from seabeds beyond waters falling within national exclusive economic zones.

Parts of the ocean floor are rich in minerals, including so-called polymetallic nodules composed mostly of copper, manganese, cobalt and nickel -- metals increasingly in demand for electric vehicle batteries.

But there's a catch: these fist-sized rocks are generally found on seabeds four to six kilometres below the surface.

Commercial mining at those depths does not currently exist, but there are several companies investing in the technology that would make it possible.

The ISA -- mandated by the UN to regulate mineral-extraction from the high seas "for the benefit of humanity as a whole" -- has approved 30 licenses for exploration.

"The threat is very imminent," said Matthew Gianni, co-founder of a coalition of deep sea conservation NGOs, adding that mining could begin within two years.

- Fragile seabeds -

One major player in the industry working with the South Pacific island states of Nauru, Kiribati and Tonga that has environmental watchdogs on high alert is The Metals Company, based in Vancouver.

"Polymetallic nodules are the cleanest path toward electric vehicles," the company website claims.

Areas in which it is licensed to explore could yield enough nodules to supply more than a quarter of a billion new electric vehicles, it said.

Because the rocks are 99 percent composed of the sought-after minerals and unattached to the sea floor, they should be easier to collect and produce little heavy metal pollution, the website said.

Environmentalists disagree.

Deep marine seabeds are fragile and poorly understood: total darkness, very cold, high-pressure, limited food filtering down from the surface, they say.

"We are only now starting to get to know these ecosystems and still don't really understand how they work," said Pierre-Marie Sarradin, who leads research on deep ecosystems at Ifremer, a top marine research centre in France.

Scientists at JPI Ocean, a European consortium, have discovered that zones with lots of polymetallic nodules are also richer in biodiversity.

The ISA has set up a number of protected areas, but scientists say they are not representative of the zones likely to be mined.

One thing scientists do know is that when these seabeds are disturbed, recovery is very slow.

- Carmakers cautious -

In one zone where the ocean floor was scraped 30 years ago "the ecosystem has still not returned to its initial state", said Sarradin.

"It is also hard to measure the impact on fixing carbon, an essential process in the fight against global warming," he added.

How mining will affect neighbouring areas, or even disturbances linked to the noise and light, are likewise unknown, especially as there are few details about the technology that would be used.

"Nodules take two million years to reform, and animal life that depends on them cannot be restored," said Katja Uhlenkott, a doctoral student at Carl-von Ossietzky University in Germany.

Several major car manufacturers have taken a cautious position on seabed mining despite the potential for supplying an essential component of one of their fastest growing markets.

BMW, Google, Samsung SDI and Volvo have all pledged not to use minerals extracted from deep-water seabeds, or to finance deep-sea mining.

For Farah Obaidullah of the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, made up of more than 80 NGOs and policy institutes, the solution for car makers remains on land.

The sought-after metals can be recycled, and new battery technologies are in the pipelines, she said.

Mining conditions on land are "currently horrendous," she acknowledged. But they can be improved.

"No one is going to go six kilometres under the sea to monitor things and say 'you are not doing things right'," she noted.

Once industry has a pathway to the deep ocean "we will be completely overwhelmed", Sarradin said.

laf/mh/lc

GOOGLE

VOLVO AB

BAYERISCHE MOTOREN WERKE AG


Related Links
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


WATER WORLD
Scientists are using new satellite tech to find glow-in-the-dark milky seas of maritime lore
Fort Collins CO (SPX) Sep 07, 2021
For centuries, sailors have been reporting strange encounters like the one above. These events are called milky seas. They are a rare nocturnal phenomenon in which the ocean's surface emits a steady bright glow. They can cover thousands of square miles and, thanks to the colorful accounts of 19th-century mariners like Capt. Kingman, milky seas are a well-known part of maritime folklore. But because of their remote and elusive nature, they are extremely difficult to study and so remain more a part of tha ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

WATER WORLD
Merkel defends would-be successor on flood zone tour

Biden warns of climate change 'code red' in visit to storm damage

Haiti racing to rebuild schools destroyed in earthquake

Climate change fuelling surge in property insurance: Swiss Re

WATER WORLD
DARPA announces research teams to advance fundamental science of atomic vapors

New augmented reality applications assist astronaut repairs to Space Station

AFRL's Aerospace Systems Directorate granted patent for innovative control surfaces technology

NASA's Deep Space Network looks to the future

WATER WORLD
Some coral reefs are keeping pace with ocean warming

New filtering method promises safer drinking water, improved industrial production

Conservation meet mulls moratorium on deep sea mining

The world in a drop of water: DNA tool transforms nature tracking

WATER WORLD
On thin ice: Near North Pole, a warning on climate change

Breaking barriers: Russian woman leads the way on Arctic ship

Global warming threatens the existence of an Arctic oasis

Swiss glaciologist bears witness to relentless Alpine glacier melt

WATER WORLD
Donkey milk soap soaking up fans in Jordan

Floating Dutch cow farm aims to curb climate impact

California winemakers take wildfire-fighting into their own hands

Two atypical cases of mad cow disease detected in Brazil

WATER WORLD
Mexican military races to help flood victims

Major Mexico earthquake causes damage, one death

Major earthquake shakes Mexico, as 17 patients die after floods hit hospital

Tropical Storm Mindy hits Florida

WATER WORLD
Guinea putchists release first batch of 'political detainees'

Trash inspires Kinshasa performance artists

Nigeria's troubled exit path for repentant jihadists

South Sudan VP says no deal agreed on uniting troops

WATER WORLD
The evolution of mammals reveals 2,000 new genes key to longevity in humans

Study reveals link between microbiome, early brain development

Environmental conditions of early humans in Europe

America's first civilization was made up of 'sophisticated' engineers









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.