A little-known organization associated with the UN is actively preparing the ground for the mining of the planet’s ocean floors. It has already granted exploration permits totaling hundreds of thousands of square kilometers for the search for coveted minerals for technological development and energy transition. However, this new industry risks threatening marine ecosystems to the deepest depths of the oceans.
Humanity’s appetite for mining should continue to grow in the coming years, stimulated in particular by the electrification of transport, the development of solar and wind energy, and the use of new technologies and the continued manufacture of devices that have a short lifespan and are very little recycled.
However, many of the minerals that will be used to meet industrial demand are either scarce on land or not very present in certain countries where their use is increasing, particularly in Europe and Asia. This has the effect of drawing attention to the imposing mineral resources that are found in the seabed of several regions of the planet, explain the To have to researchers Pierre-Marie Sarradin and Jozée Sarrazin, from the Deep Ecosystem Study research unit of the French Research Institute for the Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer).
The idea of exploring and exploiting the mining potential of the seabed, up to more than 4,000 meters deep in some cases, is by no means theoretical. According to data provided by Ifremer, a total of 31 exploration permits have already been granted by the International Seabed Authority (AIFM), an independent body set up within the framework of the United Nations Convention on the law of the sea. This did not respond to our numerous requests for clarification. He is holding his 26e session until December 10.
Multiple holders
The permits all relate to international waters, that is, areas far offshore, and they are held by 22 companies or states. According to the list on the AIFM website, the bearers come from several regions of the world. It includes the governments of India, Poland and South Korea, but also the Russian Ministry of Natural Resources, a British company, a German state-owned company, two Japanese companies and three Chinese developers. , including a company specializing in technological development.
The holders of exploration permits control an area of seabed in the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans which totals several hundred thousand square kilometers. In particular, there are potential deposits of polymetallic sulphides along the Canadian west coast. These deposits can contain gold, silver, iron, copper and zinc. Further offshore, in the international waters of the North Pacific, there are deposits of ferromanganese rich in manganese, cobalt and nickel.
A large region of the Pacific located west of Mexico, however, arouses particular envy: the area of Clarion-Clipperton. Permits for more than 1.2 million square kilometers are active there, held by 16 different developers. There are more than 20 billion tonnes of polymetallic nodules, which contain more than ten different chemical elements, in these sea beds.
All of these resources found in the ocean floor could meet growing industrial demand over the coming decades. They also contain rare earths used in the development of several technologies, in particular for the manufacture of our cell phones, our computers and electric vehicles, but also for the production of solar and wind energy.
Upcoming operation
Under pressure from some states wishing to launch experimental exploitation projects, the AIFM, which is based in Jamaica, is currently working to complete a regulatory framework for the international seabed area, i.e. all the territory outside national borders. . In a statement released on November 23, the organization said it was looking for a “legal consultant” in order, among other things, to provide it with an opinion with a view to “finalizing” the draft regulations for mining.
According to Mme Sarrazin and M. Sarradin, this regulation should be established within two years, which will open the door to the granting of operating permits. In a context where demand for certain resources is increasing rapidly and where several companies are developing techniques that would make it possible to exploit the seabed, even at great depths, Ifremer researchers believe that the technology “could be operational from here. 5 to 10 years ”.
The duty visited the sites of some of the companies eyeing this untapped mining potential. They all argue that seabed resources are an essential element of the energy transition, and therefore of the fight against the climate crisis. What is more, all companies claim that this operation would pose little risk to the environment, despite the absence of independent studies on the environmental effects.
The Ifremer researchers are also warning against the potential repercussions of this industry: destruction of habitats, plumes of particles, noise, vibrations, recirculation of sediments and toxic compounds that could travel over very long distances. great distances, etc. “All these elements risk disrupting basic biological functions such as reproduction, migration, recruitment, life cycles, even the major geochemical cycles of the ocean”, warn Pierre-Marie Sarradin and Jozée Sarrazin.
Moratorium request
For the organization Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, it is therefore necessary to impose a “moratorium” on mining projects in the marine environment before they cause damage that could last for several years.
“The biodiversity of the targeted areas could take centuries to recover, especially since extraction would completely destroy the seabed,” underlines Sian Owen, who has coordinated the organization’s strategy for ten years. She adds that the energy “transition” should go hand in hand with the idea of reducing the demand for resources, which does not fit with the desire to go and exploit minerals to the bottom of the oceans. Mme Owen also recalls that many technological products are still very little recycled, which constitutes a significant waste of non-renewable resources.
Faced with the outcry raised in part of the scientific community, companies like Samsung, BMW, Google, Volvo and Microsoft have called for a moratorium on the development of this new mining industry.
This principle seems, in the eyes of many, the way to go. “Knowledge of the functioning of the ecosystems associated with these resources, even if it increases a little more each year, is still largely insufficient for us to be able to assess the effects of exploitation in a robust manner, but also for us to can propose effective environmental monitoring strategies ”, argue Mr. Sarradin and Mr.me Sarrazin.