Avoid Depths

We’re at a crossroads when it comes to the deep sea. Though we know relatively little about this other-worldly environment, we do know that it is teeming with unique and undiscovered life, and that the seafloor is rich in metals like nickel and cobalt, metals that are in increasing demand for green energy technologies. What we do with that information is up to the International Seabed Authority (ISA), which has for the past two weeks essentially been negotiating the fate of our deep oceans in Kingston, Jamaica.
 
Let’s back up a bit. For years, the ISA — which is tasked with regulating all mineral-related activities in international waters while also protecting the marine environment — has been working to develop mining regulations, and putting off prospective mining companies until it did. But in 2021, the island nation of Narau forced its hand, triggering an obscure rule that gave the ISA two years to establish mining regulations or to start accepting applications. (The ISA requires private companies to have national sponsorship for their mining applications, and Nauru is sponsoring one such eager company.)
 
The two-year deadline, July 9, has come and gone — but a mining code remains elusive. That’s put the ISA in a sticky situation. It is now scrambling to finalize regulations — which are likely months away at best — while also trying to figure what to do if mining applications start rolling in before then.
 
The ISA isn’t doing well under pressure. Ahead of the Kingston negotiations, it restricted peaceful protests at the meeting, and prohibited “derisory activity or criticism” by media. On Wednesday, with only a week left of the talks, it moved crucial negotiations behind closed doors.
 
Meanwhile, a growing number of scientists and environmentalists, along with 20-plus ISA member countries, are calling for the organization to hit pause on mining altogether. As they point out, we simply don’t know enough about deep-sea ecosystems to understand how exactly mining would impact them, though we can be sure it would take a toll. (Think bus-size machines that suck metal-filled nodules off the seafloor.)
 
Honestly, this one seems like a no-brainer. We have an exceedingly rare opportunity to choose preservation over profit, and to avoid deliberate harm. It’s not that the underwater environment is pristine — climate change, plastic pollution, and mining exploration have all left a mark there. But it’s one of the last places on Earth where our human touch has, so far, been relatively light.
 
It may not be likely, but maybe, just maybe, we will manage to leave it that way.

Photo by Tolga Ahmetler

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