🐋 What is deep-sea mining?

Deep-sea mining refers to the practice of extracting copper, nickel, cobalt, and other rare earth elements from the ocean floor.

And no, it doesn’t actually look like this. ⬆️

It’s more like this. ⬇️

The idea of deep-sea mining has long been controversial.

For much of the last 100 years, it was seen as extraordinarily difficult — if not impossible.

According to environmentalists:

Despite these concerns, Norway became the first country in the world to commit to commercial deep-sea mining last year after a coalition of Norwegian political parties approved plans to allow full-scale mining in the seas north of Europe. (see below)

A 2018 paper published in the Harvard Environmental Law Review argues that deep-sea mining will become a “new global gold rush” that:

On the other hand, Walter Sognnes, the CEO of a Norwegian seabed mining company, said that:

So, what is Deep-Sea Mining?

There are three main types of deep-sea mining:

1. polymetallic nodule mining (collecting potato-sized nodules)

2. polymetallic sulphide mining (extracting minerals from hydrothermal vents)

3. cobalt-rich ferromanganese crust mining (removing crusts from seamounts)

One of the main attractions of deep-sea mining is the abundance of polymetallic nodules scattered across the abyssal plains.

These potato-sized nodules are rich in nickel, copper, and other essential metals.

The allure of harvesting these nodules lies in their high metal content, with estimates suggesting that they contain higher concentrations of copper and nickel than many terrestrial mines.

Accessing these resources could alleviate the strain on terrestrial mining operations and help meet the increasing demand for metals critical to modern infrastructure — particularly for the minerals needed for electric vehicles (EVs), EV batteries, solar panels, and other elements of the green transition.

What’s so difficult about Deep-Sea Mining?

Unsurprisingly, it's really hard to operate a mine at the bottom of the ocean.

Any equipment that goes to the seafloor must be capable of withstanding:

• extreme pressure

• a lack of light

• corrosive seawater

• low temperatures

Deep-sea mining operators must also transport the mined minerals to the surface, which is no easy task.

Companies are developing the technology needed to mine and transport minerals in the ocean, and progress is still ongoing.

Environmental Concerns about Deep-Sea Mining

At the same time that companies and countries alike are looking to deep-sea mining as a potential source of wealth and rare minerals, environmentalists and conservationists are pointing to the obvious threats that the practice would pose to oceanic ecosystems.

There are several ways that deep-sea mining could harm oceanic environments:

• Habitat destruction that would reduce biodiversity on the seafloor

• Sediment plumes produced by mining that could negatively impact sea creatures and biodiversity throughout the ocean

• Chemical pollution

• Light pollution in parts of the ocean that are typically dark

• The release of carbon in the seafloor into the ocean and ultimately the atmosphere

In addition to these factors, there are concerns that deep-sea ecosystems have much slower natural recovery rates than terrestrial ecosystems.

One study, conducted in the mineral-rich Clarion-Clipperton Zone between Hawaii and Mexico, found that deep-sea ecosystems did not return to their previous state 26 years after deep-sea mining simulations took place.

The fight against deep-sea mining

Activists have pushed countries to sign on to the UN’s Marine Biodiversity of Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction after decades of work on the issue.

And last year, actor Jason Momoa narrated a documentary called Deep Rising that details the ecological threat that deep-sea mining poses to the Earth's oceans.

Mattieu Rytz, the filmmaker behind Deep Rising, said:

ART OF THE DAY

The Deep by Eva Volf. 2019.