Source: Scoop NZ
Author: Greenpeace Aotearoa
Greenpeace has documented signs of “significant disturbance” from deep sea mining tests in the Pacific Ocean. New images reveal a large patch of sediment rising to the surface of the water after equipment tests carried out by mining company Global Sea Mineral Resources (GSR ), which is aiming to commercially extract minerals from the seabed in the future. GSR is deploying a prototype mining machine approximately 4500 metres deep in the Clarion Clipperton Zone, an area between Mexico and Hawaii.
To highlight the threats of deep sea mining to the oceans, Greenpeace International activists painted “RISK!” in approximately 2 metre high letters across the side of the ship Normand Energy, chartered by GSR.
Dr Sandra Schoettner, deep-sea biologist from Greenpeace International on board the Rainbow Warrior, said:
“We took action because even at the testing stage, mining companies are now impacting one of the most remote and least known environments on Earth. We have witnessed this heavy gear being submerged repeatedly into the water and coming back up surrounded by a large cloud of sediment after the machine worked on the seabed. This indicates that a significant disturbance at the bottom of the ocean is occurring”.
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