Trump Allows Deep-Sea Mining – Even in International Waters

With yet another executive order, Trump recently opened up deep-sea mining for minerals both off the coast of California and in international waters – and it is controversial.

Rare earth minerals are needed in modern electronics and are crucial for the so-called green transition. Today, almost all extraction (86%) takes place in China, which is one of the reasons why the United States is desperate to find its own resources.

Rare earth elements are not actually rare, just difficult to access. They lie ‘open’ in the deep sea as metal-rich lumps, known as ‘nodules’, but at a depth that makes them difficult and risky to extract. And we know very little about what the consequences would be if we started to harvest them. That is why the ISA (International Seabed Authority) has decided that we must wait with all deep-sea mining until we know more.

Life at the bottom of the sea is dark, silent and almost completely unexplored. Mysterious creatures, glowing jellyfish, giant squids and undiscovered animals swim around in constant darkness. And oxygen seeps out of metallic stones. Most of it is a mystery, and until we know more about how important the deep sea is to the Earth, we should leave it alone, according to scientists. But the Trump administration cannot wait.

Delve deeper into the background in the article: Deep sea mining – a background

See our report: Mining the depths

And read about the ‘pink sea pigs’ found far down below: Pink sea pig found in the depths – ‘It’s mind-boggling’

________________________________

^{About Deep Sea Reporter: Our ambition is to examine and report on issues related to the sea and the life that exists beneath its surface. We operate in the public interest and are independent of political, commercial, and other interests in society.}