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edited the section on the negative effects of seabed mining, added much more info.
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==Resources==
==Resources==
The varied and complex physical, chemical, geological and biological processes occurring in the ocean can sometime produce economically viable concentrations of a range of minerals, notably in the vicinity of [[Hydrothermal vent|hydrothermal vents]], where highly concentrated fluids precipitate out their solutes on cooling. So far (2022) the technical and economic problems of extraction have not been overcome for most deposits, though there have been some viable underwater mining operations, notably the recovery of diamonds off the west coast of southern Africa.<ref name="Woods Hole" />
The varied and complex physical, chemical, geological and biological processes occurring in the ocean can sometime produce economically viable concentrations of a range of minerals, notably in the vicinity of [[Hydrothermal vent|hydrothermal vents]], where highly concentrated fluids precipitate out their solutes on cooling. So far (2022) the technical and economic problems of extraction have not been overcome for most deposits, though there have been some viable underwater mining operations, notably the recovery of diamonds off the west coast of southern Africa.<ref name="Woods Hole" />


Deposits of diamonds, iron sands with titanomagnetite and lime-soda feldspars, cobalt-rich manganese crusts, phosphorite nodules and manganese nodules are already known. The value and scarcity of rare earth elements is encouraging investigation into the possibility of refining them from seabed deposits.<ref name="Woods Hole" />There is also scope for extracting methane from gas hydrates in marine sediment on continental slopes and rises.<ref name="Miller et al 2016" />
Deposits of diamonds, iron sands with titanomagnetite and lime-soda feldspars, cobalt-rich manganese crusts, phosphorite nodules and manganese nodules are already known. The value and scarcity of rare earth elements is encouraging investigation into the possibility of refining them from seabed deposits.<ref name="Woods Hole" />There is also scope for extracting methane from gas hydrates in marine sediment on continental slopes and rises.<ref name="Miller et al 2016" />
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=== Positive ===
=== Positive ===
There is potential for positive economic impact for both the mining industries involved, the industries that need the available minerals, and for the countries with exclusive economic zones in which the deposits are located.<ref name="Woods Hole" />
There is potential for positive economic impact for both the mining industries involved, the industries that need the available minerals, and for the countries with [[Exclusive economic zone|exclusive economic zones]] (EEZ) in which the deposits are located.<ref name="Woods Hole" />


Seabed mining has been advocated as an alternative to [[Mining|land-based mining]]. Land-based mining is known to have a destructive impact through contribution to toxic wastewater, soil contamination and deforestation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lèbre |first=Éléonore |last2=Kung |first2=Anthony |last3=Savinova |first3=Ekaterina |last4=Valenta |first4=Rick K. |date=2023-04-01 |title=Mining on land or in the deep sea? Overlooked considerations of a reshuffling in the supply source mix |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344923000356 |journal=Resources, Conservation and Recycling |volume=191 |pages=106898 |doi=10.1016/j.resconrec.2023.106898 |issn=0921-3449}}</ref> Cases in China and Indonesia the waste from lithium, graphite and silicon has destroyed whole villages and ecosystems, as well as major [[acid mine drainage]] issues in America.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Conca |first=James |title=Is Mining The Ocean Bottom For Metals Really Better Than Mining On Land? |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2021/02/24/is-mining-the-ocean-bottom-for-metals-really-better-than-mining-on-land/ |access-date=2023-12-12 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> Land-based mining also produces over 350 billion tonnes of waste and has a major carbon footprint.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Paulikas |first=Daina |last2=Katona |first2=Steven |last3=Ilves |first3=Erika |last4=Ali |first4=Saleem H. |date=2020 |title=Life cycle climate change impacts of producing battery metals from land ores versus deep-sea polymetallic nodules |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123822 |journal=Journal of Cleaner Production |volume=275 |pages= |doi=10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123822 |issn=0959-6526}}</ref> It accounts for 11% of global energy, compared to an estimated 1% in deep sea mining.<ref name=":1" /> Tens of thousands of square kilometers of forests are cleared for land-based mining, with it expected to increase in the coming decades, leading to further habitat destruction and biodiversity loss.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Giljum |first=Stefan |last2=Maus |first2=Victor |last3=Kuschnig |first3=Nikolas |last4=Luckeneder |first4=Sebastian |last5=Tost |first5=Michael |last6=Sonter |first6=Laura J. |last7=Bebbington |first7=Anthony J. |date=2022-09-20 |title=A pantropical assessment of deforestation caused by industrial mining |url=https://pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2118273119 |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |language=en |volume=119 |issue=38 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2118273119 |issn=0027-8424 |pmc=PMC9499560 |pmid=36095187}}</ref> Some studies have shown that the deep sea has the lowest biomass environments on the planet.<ref name=":1" /> The Clarion Clipperton Zone has 300 times less biomass than average biome on land and up to 3000 times less compared to rainforest regions where most land mines are located.<ref name=":1" /> The life that does exist is 70% bacteria, and most organisms are smaller than 4cm.<ref name=":1" /> Ultimately there is still inadequate data to confirm these studies.
Seabed mining has been advocated as an alternative to [[Mining|land-based mining]]. Land-based mining is known to have a destructive impact through contribution to toxic wastewater, soil contamination and deforestation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lèbre |first=Éléonore |last2=Kung |first2=Anthony |last3=Savinova |first3=Ekaterina |last4=Valenta |first4=Rick K. |date=2023-04-01 |title=Mining on land or in the deep sea? Overlooked considerations of a reshuffling in the supply source mix |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344923000356 |journal=Resources, Conservation and Recycling |volume=191 |pages=106898 |doi=10.1016/j.resconrec.2023.106898 |issn=0921-3449}}</ref> Cases in China and Indonesia the waste from lithium, graphite and silicon has destroyed whole villages and ecosystems, as well as major [[acid mine drainage]] issues in America.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Conca |first=James |title=Is Mining The Ocean Bottom For Metals Really Better Than Mining On Land? |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2021/02/24/is-mining-the-ocean-bottom-for-metals-really-better-than-mining-on-land/ |access-date=2023-12-12 |website=Forbes |language=en}}</ref> Land-based mining also produces over 350 billion tonnes of waste and has a major carbon footprint.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Paulikas |first=Daina |last2=Katona |first2=Steven |last3=Ilves |first3=Erika |last4=Ali |first4=Saleem H. |date=2020 |title=Life cycle climate change impacts of producing battery metals from land ores versus deep-sea polymetallic nodules |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123822 |journal=Journal of Cleaner Production |volume=275 |pages= |doi=10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123822 |issn=0959-6526}}</ref> It accounts for 11% of global energy, compared to an estimated 1% in deep sea mining.<ref name=":1" /> Tens of thousands of square kilometers of forests are cleared for land-based mining, with it expected to increase in the coming decades, leading to further habitat destruction and biodiversity loss.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Giljum |first=Stefan |last2=Maus |first2=Victor |last3=Kuschnig |first3=Nikolas |last4=Luckeneder |first4=Sebastian |last5=Tost |first5=Michael |last6=Sonter |first6=Laura J. |last7=Bebbington |first7=Anthony J. |date=2022-09-20 |title=A pantropical assessment of deforestation caused by industrial mining |url=https://pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.2118273119 |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |language=en |volume=119 |issue=38 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2118273119 |issn=0027-8424 |pmc=PMC9499560 |pmid=36095187}}</ref> Some studies have shown that the deep sea has the lowest biomass environments on the planet.<ref name=":1" /> The Clarion Clipperton Zone has 300 times less biomass than average biome on land and up to 3000 times less compared to rainforest regions where most land mines are located.<ref name=":1" /> The life that does exist is 70% bacteria, and most organisms are smaller than 4cm.<ref name=":1" /> Ultimately there is still inadequate data to confirm these studies.
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The deep sea provides minerals in high demand for new green technology. This cannot be met by current recycling schemes and to keep up with intensified demand, production of these minerals amongst others would need to increase by nearly 500% by 2050.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-06-16 |title=Deep-sea mining: An environmental solution or impending catastrophe? |url=https://news.mongabay.com/2020/06/deep-sea-mining-an-environmental-solution-or-impending-catastrophe/ |access-date=2023-12-12 |website=Mongabay Environmental News |language=en-US}}</ref> The deep sea is much more economical than land based sources as metal ores on land yield below 20%, often using less than 2%, whilst seabed nodules are 99% usable minerals.<ref name=":0" />
The deep sea provides minerals in high demand for new green technology. This cannot be met by current recycling schemes and to keep up with intensified demand, production of these minerals amongst others would need to increase by nearly 500% by 2050.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2020-06-16 |title=Deep-sea mining: An environmental solution or impending catastrophe? |url=https://news.mongabay.com/2020/06/deep-sea-mining-an-environmental-solution-or-impending-catastrophe/ |access-date=2023-12-12 |website=Mongabay Environmental News |language=en-US}}</ref> The deep sea is much more economical than land based sources as metal ores on land yield below 20%, often using less than 2%, whilst seabed nodules are 99% usable minerals.<ref name=":0" />


There is also a reduced social cost to the nations with seabed deposits compared to nations with land-based mines, as sea bed mining has little cost on human life due to its distance from land hazards. Land mines have a large association with deaths and injuries and the financial cost of these. Land mining is the second-most harmful industry to human health, with estimated nearly 7 million people at risk from the toxic waste land mining produces and a death toll of more than 15,000 miners every year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016 |title=World’s Worst Pollution Problems 2016: The Toxics Beneath our Feet. |url=http://www.worstpolluted.org/docs/WorldsWorst2016.pdf |website=Worst Polluted.Org |publisher=Pure Earth and Green Cross Switzerland.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=The World Counts |url=https://www.theworldcounts.com/challenges/planet-earth/mining/health-effects-of-mining |access-date=2023-12-12 |website=www.theworldcounts.com}}</ref> There is a range of financial cost depending on a nations valuation of the cost of human life. For example, in South Africa, 143 deaths in 2 years of mining cost $150 million dollars.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Viscusi |first=W. Kip |last2=Masterman |first2=Clayton J. |date=2017 |title=Income Elasticities and Global Values of a Statistical Life |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/product/identifier/S2194588817000124/type/journal_article |journal=Cambridge Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis |language=en |volume=8 |issue=2 |pages=226-250 |doi=10.1017/bca.2017.12 |issn=2194-5888}}</ref> Often, vulnerable populations are disproportionately affected, as workers are often and underprivileged people or children in developing countries. Half of cobalt supplies come from inhumane child labour practises and the predicted intensification in the land-based extraction of metals can exacerbate human rights abuses.<ref name=":0" /> There is also issues with the practise of building mines on indigenous lands because they are often remote. However, indigenous inhabitants have few resources to resist them.<ref>{{Citation |title=The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.5040/9781472565358.0005 |work=Reflections on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples |access-date=2023-12-12 |publisher=Hart Publishing |isbn=978-1-84113-878-7}}</ref> Seabed mining as an alternative source causes no cultural disruption. Mining companies have also offered 'benefit sharing' to the nations who provide them with contracts to mine within their EEZ.<ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last=Koschinsky |first=Andrea |last2=Heinrich |first2=Luise |last3=Boehnke |first3=Klaus |last4=Cohrs |first4=J Christopher |last5=Markus |first5=Till |last6=Shani |first6=Maor |last7=Singh |first7=Pradeep |last8=Smith Stegen |first8=Karen |last9=Werner |first9=Welf |date=2018 |title=Deep‐sea mining: Interdisciplinary research on potential environmental, legal, economic, and societal implications |url=https://setac.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ieam.4071 |journal=Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management |language=en |volume=14 |issue=6 |pages=672–691 |doi=10.1002/ieam.4071 |issn=1551-3777}}</ref> This can include the provision of employment and training, infrastructure development, direct community investment and payments to the government as compensation to the local communities. Infrastructure development could provide access to electricity and clean water or development of roads, schools, and hospitals.<ref name=":2" /> The practise of redistributing benefits is up to the discretion of the companies and nations involved in the projects as their are not current guidelines.
There is also a reduced social cost to the nations with seabed deposits compared to nations with land-based mines. Land mines have a large association with deaths and injuries and the financial cost of these. Sea bed mining has little cost on human life due to its distance from land hazards.


=== Negative ===
=== Negative ===
There is also the potential for severe environmental impact by damage to sensitive and sometimes unique ecosystems by seabed disturbance and deposits of disturbed material on downstream regions. Interest in mining possibilities is providing impetus for scientific study of the deposits and the mechanisms of their formation. Biologists are concerned about the little known communities of exotic life forms which could be destroyed before they are studied. There has not been sufficient research to make predictions with any reasonable level of confidence.<ref name="Woods Hole" />
There is also the potential for severe environmental impact by damage to sensitive and sometimes unique ecosystems by seabed disturbance and deposits of disturbed material on downstream regions. Interest in mining possibilities is providing impetus for scientific study of the deposits and the mechanisms of their formation. Biologists are concerned about the little known communities of exotic life forms which could be destroyed before they are studied. There is still insufficient research to make predictions with confidence.<ref name="Woods Hole" />


Each vent discharges a unique mix of solutes, so each vent is colonized by a different combination of life forms, and researchers are continually finding new species, but a common feature of the vents is that their ecosystems thrive in conditions that would be highly hostile to most other known life, some of which might be of economic value, and might provide valuable insights into the evolution of terrestrial life. There are also concerns about the safety of the systems planned for mineral recovery, and the possible impact of accidents involving such equipment on the local and wider environment.<ref name="Woods Hole" />
In the case of deposits around hydrothermal vents, each vent discharges a unique mix of solutes and therefore each vent is colonized by a different combination of life forms. Researchers are still finding new species, but a common feature of the vents is that their ecosystems thrive in conditions that would be highly hostile to most other known life. The study of these these species could provide insights into the evolution of terrestrial life. There are also concerns about the safety of the systems planned for mineral recovery, and the possible impact of accidents involving such equipment on the local and wider environment.<ref name="Woods Hole" />

The extraction of manganese nodules in the deep sea involve large truck sized vehicles on the seabed which can potentially destroy up to a depth of 3km on the seafloor, with the plow tracks still visible decades later.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ackerman |first=Daniel |date=August 31, 2020 |title=Deep-Sea Mining: How to Balance Need for Metals with Ecological Impacts |url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/deep-sea-mining-how-to-balance-need-for-metals-with-ecological-impacts1/ |website=Scientific American}}</ref><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |date=2021-08-12 |title=Deep-sea mining: is it an environmental curse or could it save us? {{!}} Research and Innovation |url=https://ec.europa.eu/research-and-innovation/en/horizon-magazine/deep-sea-mining-it-environmental-curse-or-could-it-save-us |access-date=2023-12-12 |website=ec.europa.eu |language=en}}</ref> Some studies have suggested that the microbiology would need over 50 years to return to their undisturbed initial state.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Vonnahme |first=T. R. |last2=Molari |first2=M. |last3=Janssen |first3=F. |last4=Wenzhöfer |first4=F. |last5=Haeckel |first5=M. |last6=Titschack |first6=J. |last7=Boetius |first7=A. |date=2020 |title=Effects of a deep-sea mining experiment on seafloor microbial communities and functions after 26 years |url=https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.aaz5922 |journal=Science Advances |language=en |volume=6 |issue=18 |doi=10.1126/sciadv.aaz5922 |issn=2375-2548 |pmc=PMC7190355 |pmid=32426478}}</ref> Contracts to explore for manganese nodules are typically only for areas up to 75,000km<sup>2</sup>, but the total area affected is estimated to be between 200 and 600km<sup>2</sup> impacting a much larger marine ecosystem.<ref name=":3" /> These mining vehicles emit plumes of sediment which would transport sediment to a greater distance from the site.<ref name=":3" /> The seabed also has a much slower recovery potential as nodules only grow few tens of millimeters per million years.<ref>{{Citation |last=Sharma |first=Rahul |title=Deep-Sea Mining: Current Status and Future Considerations |date=2017 |url=http://link.springer.com/10.1007/978-3-319-52557-0_1 |work=Deep-Sea Mining |pages=3–21 |editor-last=Sharma |editor-first=Rahul |access-date=2023-12-12 |place=Cham |publisher=Springer International Publishing |language=en |doi=10.1007/978-3-319-52557-0_1 |isbn=978-3-319-52556-3}}</ref> Epifauna is the wildlife that depends on the nodules and the habitat they produce through their substrate. Following the mining of the nodules, the substrate on the nodules will not return for millions of years until new nodules are formed. These rare and slow to reproduce epifauna would face extinction from the habitat removal involved in mining nodules.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ashford |first=Oliver |last2=Baines |first2=Jonathan |last3=Barbanell |first3=Melissa |last4=Wang |first4=Ke |date=2023-07-19 |title=What We Know About Deep-sea Mining — And What We Don’t |url=https://www.wri.org/insights/deep-sea-mining-explained |language=en}}</ref> The organisms living on the seabed can also be affected by the noise and light pollution made by the mining technology or could be dispersed or smothered in the sediment of the plumes.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Miljutin |first=Dmitry M. |last2=Miljutina |first2=Maria A. |last3=Arbizu |first3=Pedro Martínez |last4=Galéron |first4=Joëlle |date=2011 |title=Deep-sea nematode assemblage has not recovered 26 years after experimental mining of polymetallic nodules (Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone, Tropical Eastern Pacific) |url=https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0967063711001063 |journal=Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers |language=en |volume=58 |issue=8 |pages=885–897 |doi=10.1016/j.dsr.2011.06.003}}</ref>

Ultimately, the remoteness and complexity of the deep-sea ecosystem contribute to the challenges scholars face to obtain accurate research results.


==Legal aspects==
==Legal aspects==


The [[International Seabed Authority]] (ISA) was established in 1982 to regulate human activities on the deep-sea floor beyond the continental shelf. It continues to develop rules for commercial mining, and as of 2016, has issued 27 contracts for mineral exploration, covering a total area of more than 1.4 million km<sup>2</sup>. Other seabed mining operations are already proceeding within exclusive economic zones of nation states, usually at relatively shallow depths on the continental shelf.<ref name="Miller et al 2016" />
The [[International Seabed Authority]] (ISA) was established in 1982 to regulate human activities on the deep-sea floor beyond the continental shelf. It continues to develop rules for commercial mining, and as of 2016, has issued 27 contracts for mineral exploration, covering a total area of more than 1.4 million km<sup>2</sup>. Other seabed mining operations are already proceeding within EEZ's of nation states, usually at relatively shallow depths on the continental shelf.<ref name="Miller et al 2016" />


The jurisdiction governing human activity in the ocean is zoned by distance from land. A coastal state's has full jurisdiction over {{convert|12|nmi|km}} of territorial sea, in accordance with the 1982 [[United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]] (UNCLOS),<ref>{{Cite web |title=United Nation Convention on the Law of the Sea |url=https://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/unclos_e.pdf}}</ref> which includes the [[air space]], the [[water column]] and the [[subsoil]]. Coastal states also have exclusive rights and jurisdiction over the resources within their {{convert|200|nmi|km}} [[exclusive economic zone]] (EEZ). Some states also have sovereign rights over the seabed and any mineral resources over an extended continental shelf beyond the EEZ. Further offshore is the [[area beyond national jurisdiction]] (ABNJ), which covers both the seabed and the water column above it. UNCLOS designates this region as the [[common heritage of mankind]]. UNCLOS provides the legal framework, and regulation and control of mineral-related activities are the responsibility of the ISA, comprising the signatory states to UNCLOS. UNCLOS Article 136 covers the common heritage of mankind, Article 137.2 covers resources and Article 145 covers the protection of the marine environment, in areas beyond national jurisdiction<ref name="Miller et al 2016" />
The jurisdiction governing human activity in the ocean is zoned by distance from land. A coastal state's has full jurisdiction over {{convert|12|nmi|km}} of territorial sea, in accordance with the 1982 [[United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea]] (UNCLOS),<ref>{{Cite web |title=United Nation Convention on the Law of the Sea |url=https://www.un.org/depts/los/convention_agreements/texts/unclos/unclos_e.pdf}}</ref> which includes the [[air space]], the [[water column]] and the [[subsoil]]. Coastal states also have exclusive rights and jurisdiction over the resources within their {{convert|200|nmi|km}} EEZ. Some states also have sovereign rights over the seabed and any mineral resources over an extended continental shelf beyond the EEZ. Further offshore is the [[area beyond national jurisdiction]] (ABNJ), which covers both the seabed and the water column above it. UNCLOS designates this region as the [[common heritage of mankind]]. UNCLOS provides the legal framework, and regulation and control of mineral-related activities are the responsibility of the ISA, comprising the signatory states to UNCLOS. UNCLOS Article 136 covers the common heritage of mankind, Article 137.2 covers resources and Article 145 covers the protection of the marine environment, in areas beyond national jurisdiction<ref name="Miller et al 2016" />


===Exclusive economic zone===
===Exclusive economic zone===

Revision as of 17:29, 12 December 2023

Seabed mining, also known as Seafloor mining[1] is the recovery of minerals from the seabed by techniques of underwater mining. The concept includes mining at shallow depths on the continental shelf and deep-sea mining at greater depths associated with tectonic activity, hydrothermal vents and the abyssal plains. The increased requirement for minerals and metals used in the technology sector has led to a renewed interest in the mining of seabed mineral resources, including massive polymetallic sulfide deposits around hydrothermal vents, cobalt-rich crusts on the sides of seamounts and fields of manganese nodules on the abyssal plains.[2] Whilst the seabed provides a high concentration of valuable minerals there is an unknown risk of ecological damage on marine species because of a lack of data.[1][2]

Resources

The varied and complex physical, chemical, geological and biological processes occurring in the ocean can sometime produce economically viable concentrations of a range of minerals, notably in the vicinity of hydrothermal vents, where highly concentrated fluids precipitate out their solutes on cooling. So far (2022) the technical and economic problems of extraction have not been overcome for most deposits, though there have been some viable underwater mining operations, notably the recovery of diamonds off the west coast of southern Africa.[1]

Deposits of diamonds, iron sands with titanomagnetite and lime-soda feldspars, cobalt-rich manganese crusts, phosphorite nodules and manganese nodules are already known. The value and scarcity of rare earth elements is encouraging investigation into the possibility of refining them from seabed deposits.[1]There is also scope for extracting methane from gas hydrates in marine sediment on continental slopes and rises.[2]

Large quantities of gas hydrates are potentially available, as 1 m3 methane hydrate can yield 164 m3 of methane gas. However, the process is technologically complex and costly, so commercial exploitation has not yet started. Estimates of the global mass of marine methane hydrates range from about 550 to 1,146 Gt C. Reserves of gas hydrates are widely distributed in the sediment of continental slopes and rises and on land beneath polar permafrost, with an estimated 95% in continental margin deposits.[2]

Projects

On the Namibian west coast of southern Africa, Diamond Fields International Ltd started shallow seabed mining for diamonds in 2001. The De Beers Group continues to use specialized ships to recover diamonds from the seabed. They extracted 1.4 million carats from the EEZ of Namibia in 2018, and in 2019, De Beers commissioned a new ship which is expected to improve productivity by a factor of two.[3]

Technology

Seabed minerals mining proposals are all based on similar concept of a seabed resource collector, a lifting system and surface vessels which may process the material offshore or transport ores to land based facilities. Most of the proposed collection systems would use remotely operated vehicles, which would remove deposits from the seabed using mechanical devices or pressurized water jets.[2] Robotic excavation machinery has been built to work deposits off Papua New Guinea, intended to start operations in 2019. These include a bulk cutter which is intended to break up the surface rock, a collecting machine which will work like a suction dredger to pump the fragments to the lift pump which will transfer the material to a ship at the surface, to be transported to a site where it will be processed. These are massive machines which maneuver around the seabed on caterpillar tracks. Minerals which concentrate in seafloor massive sulfides can be rich in metals such as copper, gold, silver, and zinc, will be mined, but these deposits need to be broken up for extraction and transport.[4][5] Natural gas would be extracted from reservoirs of gas hydrate by injecting chemical inhibitors, depressurising the reservoir, or increasing the temperature.[2]

Impact

Positive

There is potential for positive economic impact for both the mining industries involved, the industries that need the available minerals, and for the countries with exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in which the deposits are located.[1]

Seabed mining has been advocated as an alternative to land-based mining. Land-based mining is known to have a destructive impact through contribution to toxic wastewater, soil contamination and deforestation.[6] Cases in China and Indonesia the waste from lithium, graphite and silicon has destroyed whole villages and ecosystems, as well as major acid mine drainage issues in America.[7] Land-based mining also produces over 350 billion tonnes of waste and has a major carbon footprint.[8] It accounts for 11% of global energy, compared to an estimated 1% in deep sea mining.[8] Tens of thousands of square kilometers of forests are cleared for land-based mining, with it expected to increase in the coming decades, leading to further habitat destruction and biodiversity loss.[9] Some studies have shown that the deep sea has the lowest biomass environments on the planet.[8] The Clarion Clipperton Zone has 300 times less biomass than average biome on land and up to 3000 times less compared to rainforest regions where most land mines are located.[8] The life that does exist is 70% bacteria, and most organisms are smaller than 4cm.[8] Ultimately there is still inadequate data to confirm these studies.

The deep sea provides minerals in high demand for new green technology. This cannot be met by current recycling schemes and to keep up with intensified demand, production of these minerals amongst others would need to increase by nearly 500% by 2050.[10] The deep sea is much more economical than land based sources as metal ores on land yield below 20%, often using less than 2%, whilst seabed nodules are 99% usable minerals.[7]

There is also a reduced social cost to the nations with seabed deposits compared to nations with land-based mines, as sea bed mining has little cost on human life due to its distance from land hazards. Land mines have a large association with deaths and injuries and the financial cost of these. Land mining is the second-most harmful industry to human health, with estimated nearly 7 million people at risk from the toxic waste land mining produces and a death toll of more than 15,000 miners every year.[11][12] There is a range of financial cost depending on a nations valuation of the cost of human life. For example, in South Africa, 143 deaths in 2 years of mining cost $150 million dollars.[13] Often, vulnerable populations are disproportionately affected, as workers are often and underprivileged people or children in developing countries. Half of cobalt supplies come from inhumane child labour practises and the predicted intensification in the land-based extraction of metals can exacerbate human rights abuses.[7] There is also issues with the practise of building mines on indigenous lands because they are often remote. However, indigenous inhabitants have few resources to resist them.[14] Seabed mining as an alternative source causes no cultural disruption. Mining companies have also offered 'benefit sharing' to the nations who provide them with contracts to mine within their EEZ.[15] This can include the provision of employment and training, infrastructure development, direct community investment and payments to the government as compensation to the local communities. Infrastructure development could provide access to electricity and clean water or development of roads, schools, and hospitals.[15] The practise of redistributing benefits is up to the discretion of the companies and nations involved in the projects as their are not current guidelines.

Negative

There is also the potential for severe environmental impact by damage to sensitive and sometimes unique ecosystems by seabed disturbance and deposits of disturbed material on downstream regions. Interest in mining possibilities is providing impetus for scientific study of the deposits and the mechanisms of their formation. Biologists are concerned about the little known communities of exotic life forms which could be destroyed before they are studied. There is still insufficient research to make predictions with confidence.[1]

In the case of deposits around hydrothermal vents, each vent discharges a unique mix of solutes and therefore each vent is colonized by a different combination of life forms. Researchers are still finding new species, but a common feature of the vents is that their ecosystems thrive in conditions that would be highly hostile to most other known life. The study of these these species could provide insights into the evolution of terrestrial life. There are also concerns about the safety of the systems planned for mineral recovery, and the possible impact of accidents involving such equipment on the local and wider environment.[1]

The extraction of manganese nodules in the deep sea involve large truck sized vehicles on the seabed which can potentially destroy up to a depth of 3km on the seafloor, with the plow tracks still visible decades later.[16][17] Some studies have suggested that the microbiology would need over 50 years to return to their undisturbed initial state.[18] Contracts to explore for manganese nodules are typically only for areas up to 75,000km2, but the total area affected is estimated to be between 200 and 600km2 impacting a much larger marine ecosystem.[17] These mining vehicles emit plumes of sediment which would transport sediment to a greater distance from the site.[17] The seabed also has a much slower recovery potential as nodules only grow few tens of millimeters per million years.[19] Epifauna is the wildlife that depends on the nodules and the habitat they produce through their substrate. Following the mining of the nodules, the substrate on the nodules will not return for millions of years until new nodules are formed. These rare and slow to reproduce epifauna would face extinction from the habitat removal involved in mining nodules.[20] The organisms living on the seabed can also be affected by the noise and light pollution made by the mining technology or could be dispersed or smothered in the sediment of the plumes.[21]

Ultimately, the remoteness and complexity of the deep-sea ecosystem contribute to the challenges scholars face to obtain accurate research results.

Legal aspects

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) was established in 1982 to regulate human activities on the deep-sea floor beyond the continental shelf. It continues to develop rules for commercial mining, and as of 2016, has issued 27 contracts for mineral exploration, covering a total area of more than 1.4 million km2. Other seabed mining operations are already proceeding within EEZ's of nation states, usually at relatively shallow depths on the continental shelf.[2]

The jurisdiction governing human activity in the ocean is zoned by distance from land. A coastal state's has full jurisdiction over 12 nautical miles (22 km) of territorial sea, in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),[22] which includes the air space, the water column and the subsoil. Coastal states also have exclusive rights and jurisdiction over the resources within their 200 nautical miles (370 km) EEZ. Some states also have sovereign rights over the seabed and any mineral resources over an extended continental shelf beyond the EEZ. Further offshore is the area beyond national jurisdiction (ABNJ), which covers both the seabed and the water column above it. UNCLOS designates this region as the common heritage of mankind. UNCLOS provides the legal framework, and regulation and control of mineral-related activities are the responsibility of the ISA, comprising the signatory states to UNCLOS. UNCLOS Article 136 covers the common heritage of mankind, Article 137.2 covers resources and Article 145 covers the protection of the marine environment, in areas beyond national jurisdiction[2]

Exclusive economic zone

See also: Exclusive economic zone

International waters

See also: International waters

In June 2021, the president of Nauru stressed the urgency of finalizing regulations for mining in international waters to the council of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), a body of the United Nations.[23]

ISA has been working on the Mining Code, regulations governing commercial mining of the deep seafloor, since 2014 and was scheduled to publish them in 2020, The Nauru request triggered a "2-year rule" which compels ISA to finalize the rules by mid-2023.or accept applications for exploitation in the absence of formal guidelines, leaving many questions about the long-term effects of seabed mining unresolved.[23]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Seafloor Mining". www.whoi.edu. Woods Hole, Massachusetts, U.S.A: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Archived from the original on 14 September 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Miller1, Kathryn A.; Thompson, Kirsten F.; Johnston, Paul; Santillo, David (10 January 2018). "An Overview of Seabed Mining Including the Current State of Development, Environmental Impacts, and Knowledge Gaps". Front. Mar. Sci. 4. doi:10.3389/fmars.2017.00418.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ^ Hylton, Wil S. (2020). "History's Largest Mining Operation Is About to Begin". Atlantic. Vol. January–February. Archived from the original on 14 September 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  4. ^ Baggaley, Kate (27 February 2017). "These Fearsome Robots Will Bring Mining to the Deep Ocean". www.nbcnews.com. Archived from the original on 15 November 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
  5. ^ Drew, Lisa W. (29 November 2009). "The Promise and Perils of Seafloor Mining". Oceanus. Woods Hole, Massachusetts, U.S.A: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Archived from the original on 19 September 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2020.
  6. ^ Lèbre, Éléonore; Kung, Anthony; Savinova, Ekaterina; Valenta, Rick K. (1 April 2023). "Mining on land or in the deep sea? Overlooked considerations of a reshuffling in the supply source mix". Resources, Conservation and Recycling. 191: 106898. doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2023.106898. ISSN 0921-3449.
  7. ^ a b c Conca, James. "Is Mining The Ocean Bottom For Metals Really Better Than Mining On Land?". Forbes. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d e Paulikas, Daina; Katona, Steven; Ilves, Erika; Ali, Saleem H. (2020). "Life cycle climate change impacts of producing battery metals from land ores versus deep-sea polymetallic nodules". Journal of Cleaner Production. 275. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2020.123822. ISSN 0959-6526.
  9. ^ Giljum, Stefan; Maus, Victor; Kuschnig, Nikolas; Luckeneder, Sebastian; Tost, Michael; Sonter, Laura J.; Bebbington, Anthony J. (20 September 2022). "A pantropical assessment of deforestation caused by industrial mining". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 119 (38). doi:10.1073/pnas.2118273119. ISSN 0027-8424. PMC 9499560. PMID 36095187.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: PMC format (link)
  10. ^ "Deep-sea mining: An environmental solution or impending catastrophe?". Mongabay Environmental News. 16 June 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  11. ^ "World's Worst Pollution Problems 2016: The Toxics Beneath our Feet" (PDF). Worst Polluted.Org. Pure Earth and Green Cross Switzerland. 2016.
  12. ^ "The World Counts". www.theworldcounts.com. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  13. ^ Viscusi, W. Kip; Masterman, Clayton J. (2017). "Income Elasticities and Global Values of a Statistical Life". Cambridge Journal of Benefit-Cost Analysis. 8 (2): 226–250. doi:10.1017/bca.2017.12. ISSN 2194-5888. {{cite journal}}: no-break space character in |first= at position 3 (help)
  14. ^ "The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples", Reflections on the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, Hart Publishing, ISBN 978-1-84113-878-7, retrieved 12 December 2023
  15. ^ a b Koschinsky, Andrea; Heinrich, Luise; Boehnke, Klaus; Cohrs, J Christopher; Markus, Till; Shani, Maor; Singh, Pradeep; Smith Stegen, Karen; Werner, Welf (2018). "Deep‐sea mining: Interdisciplinary research on potential environmental, legal, economic, and societal implications". Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management. 14 (6): 672–691. doi:10.1002/ieam.4071. ISSN 1551-3777.
  16. ^ Ackerman, Daniel (31 August 2020). "Deep-Sea Mining: How to Balance Need for Metals with Ecological Impacts". Scientific American.
  17. ^ a b c "Deep-sea mining: is it an environmental curse or could it save us? | Research and Innovation". ec.europa.eu. 12 August 2021. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  18. ^ Vonnahme, T. R.; Molari, M.; Janssen, F.; Wenzhöfer, F.; Haeckel, M.; Titschack, J.; Boetius, A. (2020). "Effects of a deep-sea mining experiment on seafloor microbial communities and functions after 26 years". Science Advances. 6 (18). doi:10.1126/sciadv.aaz5922. ISSN 2375-2548. PMC 7190355. PMID 32426478.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: PMC format (link)
  19. ^ Sharma, Rahul (2017), Sharma, Rahul (ed.), "Deep-Sea Mining: Current Status and Future Considerations", Deep-Sea Mining, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. 3–21, doi:10.1007/978-3-319-52557-0_1, ISBN 978-3-319-52556-3, retrieved 12 December 2023
  20. ^ Ashford, Oliver; Baines, Jonathan; Barbanell, Melissa; Wang, Ke (19 July 2023). "What We Know About Deep-sea Mining — And What We Don't". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  21. ^ Miljutin, Dmitry M.; Miljutina, Maria A.; Arbizu, Pedro Martínez; Galéron, Joëlle (2011). "Deep-sea nematode assemblage has not recovered 26 years after experimental mining of polymetallic nodules (Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone, Tropical Eastern Pacific)". Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers. 58 (8): 885–897. doi:10.1016/j.dsr.2011.06.003.
  22. ^ "United Nation Convention on the Law of the Sea" (PDF).
  23. ^ a b Duncombe, Jenessa (24 January 2022). "The 2-Year Countdown to Deep-Sea Mining". Archived from the original on 14 September 2022. Retrieved 14 September 2022.
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