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

Deep-sea mining’s rapid technological progress is met with increased calls for a precautionary pause at the closing meeting of the 27th session of the International Seabed Authority.

Andrew Thaler for DSM Observer The Council of the International Seabed Authority gathered for a rare third meeting in Kingston, Jamaica this November to continue hammering out details of the Deep-sea Mining Code ahead of the July 2023 deadline. As has become customary over the last year, negotiations began with condemnations of Russia’s ongoing invasion […]

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The Metals Company completes a world-first test of deep-sea mining system.

Andrew Thaler for the Deep-sea Mining Observer The Metals Company capped off 2022 by setting a historic milestone in the development of deep-sea mining technology. As the International Seabed Authority Council convened in Kingston, the crew of the AllSeas vessel MV Hidden Gem completed the first successful recovery of polymetallic nodules from the abyssal plain […]

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A reflection of the EIA process for exploration activities at the International Seabed Authority in light of the recent NORI EIS

Commentary by Pradeep A. Singh (Fellow, Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, IASS Potsdam) and Maila Guilhon (Research Associate, Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, IASS Potsdam) Considering the potential of deep-sea mining activities to cause harm to the marine environment, the International Seabed Authority (ISA) requires exploration contractors and proponents for exploitation contracts to undertake an […]

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Mining the Ocean

The Price We’re Willing to Pay: trade-offs and balance in the deep-sea mining industry

Andrew Thaler for the DSM Observer “To build a green future,” said Gerard Barron, CEO of The Metals Company in a May 2022 press release, “our generation will need to mine more metal than we have mined in our entire history. This will lead to more emissions, more social displacement, more habitat destruction and more […]

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Legal Consequences of the Two-Year Rule at the ISA and Implications of Missing the Deadline

Interview with Pradeep A. Singh As part of the 27th Session of the International Seabed Authority, the Council met from 18-29 July and the Assembly from 1-5 August. One key topic that reverberated throughout the meetings was the looming deadline to complete the elaboration and adoption of regulations that would allow exploitation activities to commence, […]

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Transparency and trust in the Deep-sea Mining Industry

Maria Bolevich for DSM Observer Transparency builds trust, but deep-sea mining contractors are faced with the challenge of balancing a mandate for transparency under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea with the need to maintain propriety over the privileged information needed to compete in an emerging industry. This balancing act creates an […]

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“Let us be up to the task that has been given to us” – Four key takeaways from the summer meeting of the International Seabed Authority

Andrew Thaler for the DSM Observer After nearly a month and a half of meetings, including of the Legal and Technical Commission, the Finance Committee, the Council, and the Assembly, the Second part of the 27th Session of the International Seabed Authority came to a close on August 4th, 2022. Though a critical moment for […]

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The “Sword of Damocles” hangs over the future of Deep-sea Mining

Andrew Thaler for the Deep-sea Mining Observer Twenty-eight years ago, the International Seabed Authority (ISA) gathered in Jamaica for the first time to establish the regulations, standards, and guidelines governing how mineral resources—resources that under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea are the “common heritage of mankind”—would be mined from the ocean […]

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This Week in Deep-sea Mining: July 12, 2022

Headlines The Guardian: One deep sea mine could send noise 500km across the ocean – report Japan Today: Outgunned island states vow to fight deep-sea mining Reuters: France’s Macron says deep-sea mining must not go ahead Asia Pacific Report: Fiji, Palau and Samoa call for deep-sea mining moratorium at UN conference Eco-Business: Singapore affirms support […]

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This Week in Deep-sea Mining: June 7, 2022

Headlines Radio New Zealand: Pacific civil society groups urge NZ to support a moratorium on deep sea mining Reports UN Environment Program: HARMFUL MARINE EXTRACTIVES: DEEP-SEA MINING Training Opportunities ISA: Deep Ocean Resources Development Co., Ltd. (DORD) Videos

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