Should We Sacrifice The Seabed Floor For Next Generation Technology? - CleanTechnica

The article from CleanTechnica discusses the environmental and ethical concerns surrounding deep sea mining, particularly in light of recent U.S. government actions promoting the practice despite international prohibitions. Deep sea mining targets polymetallic nodules on the ocean floor, which contain valuable minerals like lithium, cobalt, copper, nickel, manganese, and rare earth elements essential for modern technologies such as electric vehicles, wind turbines, and medical devices. However, these nodules are home to unique and poorly understood marine ecosystems, including bioluminescent animals and species adapted to oxygen-minimum zones. Mining these nodules would destroy these fragile habitats, raising significant ecological concerns. The article highlights the tension between technological and economic interests and the need to protect the ocean’s last largely untouched frontier. While the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provides a legal framework for ocean governance and emphasizes the protection of marine environments for present and future generations, the Trump administration has pushed forward with mining initiatives under an older