The deep ocean, generally defined as waters at depths of 200 meters or more, accounts for 45% of the earth's surface and 95% of its habitable space. For centuries, humans believed that much of it was barren of life. But in recent decades exploration technology has advanced quickly, enabling scientists to identify approximately 250,000 species in the dark, cold depths.
That biodiversity is threatened by an excessive global demand for metals and minerals. Last year, researchers in Germany warned of global cobalt shortage by 2050, spurred by increasing demand for energy storage in renewable-energy installations and electric vehicles. Terrestrial resources are increasingly unattractive due to environmental, safety and cost concerns.
The deep ocean would appear to offer an alternative. Current estimates are that just one section of seafloor-the Clarion-Clipperton Zone that stretches from Hawaii to Baja-contains more cobalt, manganese and nickel than all known terrestrial resources, as well as significant deposits of copper and other metals. In June, DeepGreen, a Canadian deep-sea mining startup, secured most of a $150 million package to facilitate feasibility studies in the area. Deep-sea mining, the company claims, will yield "ethical, clean metals" with "no blasting, drilling, deforestation or impact on people."
That's one way to look at it. The other is more troubling. DeepGreen aim to dig up trillions of metal-rich rocks. Formed over tens of millions of years, those rocks now support unique lifeforms and habitats on their surfaces. Once they're gone, so are those organisms-probably permanently.
Proposed regulations being draffted by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) will require environmental impact statements (EIS) before mining occurs. But without long-term studies, those impact statements will be more guesswork than science. This poses serious ethical and repuatational problems for suppliers of "green" technology that people to benefit from seafloor mining. It's worth recalling that a 2015 video of a straw in a turtle's nose triggered the global movement against disposable plastics that's now up-ending decisions at some of the world's largest petrochemical companies.
Last year the European Parliament called for a suspension on deep-sea mining until the impact on marine environments, biodiversity and human activeties at sea are better understood. It's request that companies should embrace, if only as a mean of ensuring that their reputations aren't damaged later.
