Photo: FILE – Greenpeace activists stand in front of the Ministry of Industry to stage a protest demanding an end to deep sea mining, Prague, Czech Republic, June 1, 2023. Negotiations about the future of deep sea mining and mineral extraction kicked off Monday in Jamaica. Retrieved from voanews.com

Excerpt from voanews.com

Critical negotiations concerning the future of deep sea mining and mineral extraction kicked off Monday in Jamaica, as conservationists aim to rein in a nascent industry that so far lacks meaningful guardrails.

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) — a little known intergovernmental body based in Kingston — and its member states have spent the last decade trying to hash out a mining code for the possible extraction of nickel, cobalt and copper in deep seabed areas that fall outside of national jurisdictions.

But an agreement has been elusive so far.

And since Sunday, after the expiration of a deadline invoked by the small Pacific state of Nauru, the ISA would now be obligated to consider — though not necessarily grant — licenses for potentially environmentally devastating mining operations if governments request them.

That would be a step further than the status quo, which to date has only seen exploration permits granted as the deep sea mining sector itches to take off in earnest.

The ISA, meeting until the end of the month, is entering “the most critical decision-making period in the history of its existence,” said Emma Wilson, of the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition.

“We cannot allow exploitation activities to start” before there are adequate regulations in place, Chile’s representative to the ISA’s 36-member council said during the opening of Monday’s session. “We should initiate a precautionary pause.”