Check out the top stories from the deep, taken from coverage between 28 November – 5 December 2022
Storebrand dumps four mining stocks in new nature protection drive
Source: IPE Magazine
Author: Rachel Fixsen
“Norwegian financial services firm Storebrand is divesting holdings in four mining companies, worth NOK163m (€15.9m) in total, as part of a new policy on protecting nature, it announced this morning.”
Storebrand, a Norwegian financial services company, has dropped four mining corporations including deep sea miners The Metals Company. A spokesperson stated
“Storebrand will no longer invest in companies with mining operations that conduct marine or riverine tailings disposal, companies involved in deep sea mining, and companies that derive 5% of their revenues from drilling in Arctic areas that are considered especially vulnerable and valuable”.
Discovered in the deep: is this the world’s longest animal?
Source: The Guardian
Author: Helen Scales
“It was like a rope on the horizon. You couldn’t miss it,” says Nerida Wilson from the Western Australian Museum. “It was so huge.”
Off the coast of Western Australia, a 45 meter deep-sea siphonophore was spotted feeding on small crustaceans and fish. This creature, though a single organism, is made up of many pieces called ‘Zooids’. Scientists have speculated that this could be the longest animal ever spotted – but more research is needed to record this incredible creature.
‘Blue Peril’ reveals how deep-sea mining would impact Pacific Islands
Source: China Dialogue
Author: Deborah Pranis
“A new film has revealed the scale and nature of the impacts that deep-sea mining would have on life in the Pacific Island region, from direct damage to seafloor ecosystems, to tailings waste and sediment plumes.”
‘Blue Peril’ is a documentary that was produced in the wake of the ISA’s shock decision to permit ‘explorative’ mining in the Clarion Clipperton Zone. The documentary claims to present the first video investigation into the destruction caused by DSM. It pairs scientific data, projections and modelling with the experiences of affected communities to present a compelling and devastating picture of DSM’s impact.
The hidden ocean pollution killing marine mammals
Source: BBC
Author: Anna Turns
Deep-sea mining, sewage waste, plastic pollution and oil spillages (and a whole host of other issues) are very real threats to marine life; there is however another invisible threat emerging. Emma Turner draws our attention to noise pollution – a growing danger for dolphins and porpoises off the coast of Great Britain and around the world.