Cooks legislation

Seabed mining project in PNG gets $500,000 loan

Radio New Zealand | 27 December 2018 A troubled deep sea mining project in Papua New Guinea has been given a loan of nearly $US500,000. Nautilus Minerals plans to mine the floor of the Bismarck Sea between New Ireland and New Britain. The Canadian company has faced opposition from environmental and community groups, and has […]

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A new species of the sea-anemone-like Relicanthus clings to a sponge stalk on the floor of the Pacific Ocean.Credit: D. J. Amon & C. R. Smith

How to Protect the Deep Sea

By Conn Nugent for the Pew Charitable Trusts | 28 December 2018 The International Seabed Authority (ISA) was established to manage mining on the international seabed and to protect the marine environment from its harmful effects. Striking a balance is a formidable challenge. All mining operations, land or sea, cause environmental damage. Research strongly suggests […]

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Barnacles attached to hydrothermal vent spires feeding at Kawio Barat. Critics of the Solwara 1 project raised concerns about its potential impact on the ecosystems that center on hydrothermal vents. Image courtesy of NOAA Okeanos Explorer Program, INDEX-SATAL 2010

After the loss of a ship, deep sea mining plans for PNG founder

David Hutt for Monga Bay | 26 December 2018 An ambitious plan to mine precious minerals from the ocean floor off the coast of Papua New Guinea looks to have run aground due to the developer’s financial problems. In 2011, the government of Papua New Guinea granted Canada-based Nautilus Minerals a 20-year mining license covering […]

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