Avoid Depths
We’re
at a crossroads when it comes to the deep sea.
Though we know relatively little about this
other-worldly environment, we do know that it is
teeming with unique and undiscovered life, and
that the seafloor is rich in metals like nickel
and cobalt, metals that are in increasing demand
for green energy technologies. What we do with
that information is up to the International
Seabed Authority (ISA), which has for the past
two weeks essentially been negotiating the fate
of our deep oceans in Kingston,
Jamaica.
Let’s back up a bit. For
years, the ISA — which is tasked with
regulating all mineral-related activities in
international waters while also protecting the
marine environment — has been working to
develop mining regulations, and putting off
prospective mining companies until it did. But
in 2021, the island nation of Narau forced its
hand, triggering an obscure rule that gave the
ISA two years to establish mining regulations or
to start accepting applications. (The ISA
requires private companies to have national
sponsorship for their mining applications, and
Nauru is sponsoring one such eager
company.)
The two-year deadline,
July 9, has come and gone — but a mining code
remains elusive. That’s put the ISA in a sticky
situation. It is now scrambling to finalize
regulations — which are likely months
away at best — while also trying to figure
what to do if mining applications start rolling
in before then.
The ISA isn’t doing
well under pressure. Ahead of the Kingston
negotiations, it restricted peaceful protests
at the meeting, and prohibited “derisory
activity or criticism” by media. On Wednesday,
with only a week left of the talks, it moved
crucial negotiations behind closed
doors.
Meanwhile, a growing number
of scientists and environmentalists, along with
20-plus ISA member countries, are calling for
the organization to hit pause on mining
altogether. As they point out, we simply don’t
know enough about deep-sea ecosystems to
understand how exactly mining would impact them,
though we can be sure it would take a toll.
(Think bus-size machines that suck metal-filled
nodules off the
seafloor.)
Honestly, this one seems
like a no-brainer. We have an exceedingly rare
opportunity to choose preservation over profit,
and to avoid deliberate harm. It’s not that the
underwater environment is pristine — climate
change, plastic pollution, and mining
exploration have all left a mark there. But it’s
one of the last places on Earth where our human
touch has, so far, been relatively
light.
It may not be likely, but
maybe, just maybe, we will manage to leave it
that way. 
Zoe
Loftus-Farren
Managing Editor,
Earth Island
Journal
Photo by Tolga
Ahmetler |
