There are only a handful of textbooks that cover the ecology and geology of the deep oceans, and even fewer that directly address the value of deep wild places. Natural Capital and Exploitation of the Deep Ocean is the first text to attempt a comprehensive exploration of the diverse issues raised by human exploitation in […]
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Sergio Cambronero for DSM Observer The energetic transition to a low-carbon future is boosting the market for renewable energies, and this is increasing the demand for minerals. Consequently, with a renewed push for sustainable development and environmental protection, these minerals will have to come from sources that do not affect vulnerable ecosystems. Society has generally […]
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Maria Bolevich for DSM Observer This fall saw an unprecedented emphasis on calls for moratoria on deep-sea mining. Several national deliberative bodies entertained discussions on supporting a moratorium, including within some contractor sponsoring states, while a public campaign, initiated by environmental NGOs who received a boost from public statements made by Sir David Attenborough, worked […]
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Pradeep A. Singh Pradeep Singh is a research associate at the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (Potsdam, Germany). Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the scheduled July 2020 session of the Legal and Technical Commission, the Council and the Assembly of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) could not take place in-person in Kingston, Jamaica. While […]
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Carly Cassella for Science Alert Before we start mining for precious metals in the darkness of the deep sea, we might try switching on the light first and observing our surroundings. In this seemingly isolated abyss, deeper than 3,000 metres (9,800 ft) below sea level, scientists were able to coax a massive swarm of 115 […]
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Richard Fisher for the BBC At the base of the Pacific Ocean, hundreds of miles from land, there are some curious marks on the seafloor that no animal could have made. Some of them look like narrow troughs carved into the pale silt. Others could be claw marks, gouged through the ecosystems of the deep […]
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Danielle Hall for Smithsonian Magazine The year in ocean news was filled with stories that inspired awe and wonder, including one on the discovery of new species of squid and another on a broken underwater record set by a whale. But more sobering events also occurred, including a shipwreck that caused a devastating oil spill […]
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Jonathan Watts for The Guardian Private mining firms and arms companies are exerting a hidden and unhealthy influence on the fate of the deep-sea bed, according to a new report highlighting the threats facing the world’s biggest intact ecosystem. An investigation by Greenpeace found a handful of corporations in Europe and North America are increasingly dominating exploration […]
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Press Release The Council of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has approved Blue Minerals Jamaica Limited’s plan of work for exploration of polymetallic nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ), making Jamaica, the host country of ISA, the second Caribbean country and the sixth small island developing State to sponsor a contractor for exploration in the […]
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Throughout the 26th Session of the International Seabed Authority, during both the council meeting and via media interviews, deep-sea mining contractors have begun to talk about “the trigger”. The trigger is a protocol within UNCLOS which would allow sponsoring states to jumpstart the deep-sea mining process, placing a ticking clock on the development of the […]
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