Commercial interest in deep sea minerals in the area beyond the limits of national jurisdiction has rapidlyincreased in recent years. The International Seabed Authority has already given out 26 exploration contracts andit is currently in the process of developing the Mining Code for eventual exploitation of the mineral resources.Priority issues have so far been feasibility and profitability of this emerging industry, while relatively littleconsideration has been given as to how, and to an even lesser extent, whether deep seabed mining shouldproceed. This article makes a case that the global community should question and scrutinize the underlyingassumption that deep seabed mining is going benefit humankind as a whole before commercializing the commonheritage of humankind.
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