The cold floor of the deep ocean is a place human beings know very little about.
One thing we do know is that things there happen extremely slowly.
When scientists visit, their machines tracks in the sediment arestill visiblea quarter-century later.
Most of the seafloor observed during Dive 07 of the 2019 Southeastern U.S. Exploration was covered with manganese nodules, first tested nearly 50 years ago by Deep Sea Ventures.Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2019 Southeastern U.S. Deep-sea Exploration.
Once its there, minerals begin to accrete around this core.
These are often compared to potatoes in size and shape.
These claims caught the attention of both private industry and governments.
In short order, the dredging technology that Mero had imagined was developed, and commercial extraction appeared imminent.
In 1973, the United Nations began deliberations over a new so-called Law of the Sea.
The industrial powers werent thrilled.
They thought it was too socialist and gave away too much power to developing countries.
Until the Senatevotes to ratifyUNCLOS, the U.S. cannot access mining concessions in international waters.
During this period, a new argument emerged for mining the sea: It might help fight global warming.
The ocean-obsessed filmmaker James Cameron has characterized seabed mining as simplya lesser evilthan terrestrial mining.
But its not self-evident that allowing some companies to mine the sea would result in decreased terrestrial mining.
In fact, theres an argument that it could actually exacerbate the problems of mining on land.
All they needed to do was apply for areas in reserve, Gianni explained.
Her four-year term as secretary-general will begin in 2025.
Dredging up the nodules generates clouds of metallic dust on the seafloor that suffocate organisms there.
Recent studies have also begun to suggest the nodules themselves play an important ecological role.
An extremely abundant genus of sea sponge discovered in 2017lives on the nodules.
Some, like France, go even further and support an outright ban.
We think shes much more open for that.
If this happens, theres good reason to believe the environmental implications will be significant, said Singh.
They would be irreversible on human timescales.
This story was originally published byGrist.
Grist is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories of climate solutions and a just future.
News from the future, delivered to your present.
