The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is holding a pair of virtual public hearings this week to get input on a proposed rule that would revise the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (DSHMRA) regulations.
According to a notice announcing the hearings:
“DSHMRA charges NOAA with the responsibility for issuing licenses for exploration and permits for commercial recovery of polymetallic nodules from the deep seabed in areas beyond national jurisdiction and promulgating regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of the Act.”
The proposed rule changes would enable the US to unilaterally grant licenses to companies to explore and mine international waters, circumventing the international body responsible for regulating the high seas, according to the Ocean Conservancy.
Changing those rules would “unleash an environmental tragedy,” said Jeff Watters, the Ocean Conservancy’s vice president of external affairs, adding:
“Deep sea mining will, without a doubt, inflict irreparable damage on ocean life, the global fishing industry and the climate — at a huge financial cost and for minimal returns. Given that one of NOAA’s core missions is to study and protect the ocean, it’s deeply troubling to see the agency charged with the task of opening the floodgates to a destructive industry like seabed mining.”
Triple Pundit also has quotes from other environmental groups.
According to Oliver Ashford, a senior associate at the World Resources Institute’s Ocean Program:
“To act responsibly, you need to know what the likely outcomes of your actions are, and I don’t think we really understand that yet. It would be a bit of a step into the dark.”
While Breakthrough Institute climate and energy Director Seaver Wang said:
“If you realize that an impact is more adverse than you previously anticipated, you could tell them to stop, and the impact ceases.”
In the 1970s, a robotic vehicle used by a seabed mining company left tracks that can still be seen today, to which Oceana research associate Jillian Acker said:
“The fact that the test site remains barren compared to surrounding areas is hard physical evidence of how long-lasting deep-sea mining damage might be, and we still know so little about how these ecosystems respond.”