Check out the top stories from the deep, taken from coverage between 16 January – 23 January 2023
French MPs vote to block deep-sea mining and back international ban
Source: RFI
The French National Assembly voted on Tuesday in favour of banning deep-sea mining in its waters
In 2022 Macron announced his opposition to deep-sea mining (calling for a ban on all DSM). This week, French ministers are followed as a large majority (215 out of 271) voted in favour of a moratorium. They also called on France to block the ISA’s use of ‘provisional’ mining licenses, and called for greater transparency from the ISA.
Deep seabed mining plans pit renewable energy demand against ocean life in a largely unexplored frontier
Source: The Conversation
Authors: Scott Shackelford, Christiana Ochoa, David Bosco, Kerry Krutilla
As scholars who have long focused on the economic, politicaland legal challenges posed by deep seabed mining, we have each studied and written on this economic frontier with concern for the regulatory and ecological challenges it poses.
Starting with the sordid expedition of 1974, four experts on deep-sea mining provide a detailed overview on the rise of DSM.
Is strip-mining the sea floor to fight climate change necessary? Let’s find out before it’s too late
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Author: David Helvarg
Much of the coverage of deep seabed mining has been framed to highlight the climate benefits. But this overlooks the dangers this activity could pose for the Earth’s largest pristine ecology – the deep sea.
In discussing the claims made by DSM companies, and unpacking the concerns voiced by scientists, the San Francisco Chronicle sides with calls for a DSM Moratorium: “We believe it would be wise to better understand this existing, fragile ecosystem better before rushing to mine it.”
Achieving Zero Emissions with More Mobility and Less Mining
Source: Climate + Community Project
Authors: Thea Riofrancos, Alissa Kendall, Kristi K. Dayemo, Matthew Haugen, Kira McDonald, Batul Hassan, Margaret Slattery
We designed a novel material flow analysis paired with socioeconomic pathway modeling to determine possible scenarios for the decarbonization of personal transportation in the US.
As the ‘clean energy transition’ accelerates, demand for battery powered vehicles in the US is predicted to balloon. The demand this will place on rare materials means that destructive mining industries (including deep-sea mining) could also flourish. Scientists and engineers however are coming together to pioneer alternative and far less damaging solutions.