Known unknowns for deep-sea mining

New research from University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, USA, oceanographers, shows that current science is insufficient to support evidence-based decision-making on deep sea mining.

These findings come as the International Seabed Authority prepares to meet in late March to discuss regulations that would allow commercial-scale deep-sea mining to begin as early as July 2023.

The work is published in Marine Policy.

‘This gap analysis highlights how much we still need to know about deep-sea ecosystems to effectively manage seabed mining, and to even know how damaging mining will be to ocean ecosystems from the seafloor to the ocean’s surface,’ explains Craig Smith, professor emeritus of oceanography at UH Mānoa’s School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, and study co-author.

The study identifies gaps in environmental knowledge for areas of the deep seabed targeted for mining. Further, the authors propose a path for filling those gaps to help policymakers better understand the questions raised by mining so they can ground their decisions in science.