11 October 2019 — Ugly deep-sea creature of the week

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) has been in the spotlight recently as negotiations for a "Mining Code" to regulate deep-sea mining (DSM) continue. The ISA has issued the 30th exploration licence to China (China's 5th). At present, multinational corporations, start-ups and state-backed companies conduct exploration activities that cover more than 1.3 million square kilometres of the seabed.

But concern is mounting as to whether DSM can ever be sustainable. A couple of new reports make vociferous arguments against DSM, warning of the potential for irreversible harm and questioning the ISA's impartiality and approach to regulation: In Deep Water: the Emerging Threat of Deep Sea Mining (Greenpeace) and Why the Rush? seabed mining in the Pacific ocean (Deep Sea Mining Campaign).

Calls for a moratorium are also growing. The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC) is the latest group to call for a 10-year pause and a group of 28 deep-sea scientists have written to the ISA secretariat warning that mining “puts the overall health of ocean ecosystems under threat”. Meanwhile Fiji has urged its Pacific neighbours to support a moratorium  to allow for scientific research on potential impacts (Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea expressed their support).​

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Ugly deep-sea creature of the week

"When I was filming Blue Planet Live, I was struck by just how much of the ocean has been altered by humans. From industrial fisheries ensnaring ocean giants in kilometres-long lines, to finding our trash at some of the deepest parts of the ocean: it’s clear that however vast the seas are, we are causing profound harm. Yet at this point in history, when the oceans are facing more pressures than ever before, a secretive new industry is seeking to move into the deep sea, the largest ecosystem on the planet, to start mining for metals and minerals.“

IMarEST Ocean Governance Special Interest Group
Governance lies at the heart of conservation and sustainable use of the ocean’s resources. From geopolitics and ocean pollution to seabed resource extraction, ocean governance is becoming ever more complex. The IMarEST Ocean Governance SIG brings together expertise to raise awareness, promote practical solutions, and offer impartial and informed advice for driving change and engagement between regulators, policy makers, academics and regulatory scientists. More info here. 

Thaissa Meira is a researcher at the Foundation for International Law for the Environment (FILE), carrying out research on marine environment and biodiversity protection, as well as climate change litigation under the law of the sea.

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