As the deep-sea remains one of Earth’s least understood ecosystems, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has developed tools and frameworks designed to support environmental decision-making around potential deep-sea mining activities.
Deep-sea mining refers to the process of extracting mineral deposits from the ocean floor, typically at depths greater than 200m.
The project represents the first time that ecosystem-based management (EBM) principles have been applied so comprehensively to the deep sea.
The research consortium, comprising CSIRO, Griffith University, Museums Victoria, the University of the Sunshine Coast, and Earth Sciences New Zealand, used an EBM framework to assess environmental risks and develop management strategies that can adapt as new knowledge emerges.
Rather than focusing on a single dataset or indicator, the research was designed as a modular, integrated system of interlinked studies.
CSIRO senior principal research scientist Dr Piers Dunstan the researchers started with ecosystem models then moved over time to more quantitative assessments, describing the impacts on the seabed and the potential impacts in the pelagic environment.
“From there, we considered how this information could be used to make decisions about what constitutes serious harm and we developed a process that stakeholders could work through,” Dunstan says.
The key outcomes of the eight reports include a definition of serious harm using a traffic light system, a full ecosystem model of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ), a suite of environmental indicators, a risk-based management process, and a quantitative risk assessment.
The CCZ, located in the Pacific Ocean, hosts what is estimated to be trillions of dollars of critical metals.
Laying the groundwork for future decisions
Dunstan says the research and modelling provide new insights into the specific ecosystem type and environmental conditions of the CCZ.
“There are clearly impacts on the seabed from deep-sea mining,” he says.
CSIRO reports models and observations suggest that there is a disconnection between the bathypelagic (at depths between 1,000 to 3,000 metres) and epipelagic (upper ocean down to 200 metres) zone in the CCZ, meaning the transfer of impacts from deep-sea mining is constrained.
The research looked at functional groups at the species level, finding that some groups may be quick to recover if disturbed by mining, while others may be slow to recover, or not recover at all.
“Essentially, our research shows that monitoring is critically important if mining were to go ahead. And this monitoring would validate any modelling undertaken,” Dunstan says.
CSIRO believes that the methods developed through this project can be applied to deep sea environmentals globally.
As nations, industries and regulators continue to weigh the benefits and risks of seabed mining, this research sets a new benchmark for environmental oversight.
Nauru, a small island northeast of Australia, is dedicated to ensuring that future extractive activities are done responsibly.
Since becoming the first developing state to sponsor a polymetallic nodule exploration contract in the Reserved Area of the CCZ, Nauru and its sponsored entity, Nauru Ocean Resources Inc (NORI) have taken a leading role in shaping the deep-sea mining industry, as reported by Mining.com.au.
Polymetallic nodules offer the cleanest source of critical base metals.
Representing 22% of The Metals Company’s (NASDAQ:TMC) estimated resources in the CCZ, the NORI licence area is ranked as having the largest undeveloped nickel deposit in the world.
Over the course of 22 offshore research campaigns since 2012, NORI has assembled what is touted as the world’s most comprehensive dataset of deep-sea environmental information and conducted the first integrated mining test in the CCZ since the 1970s.
Write to Aaliyah Rogan at Mining.com.au
Images: The Metals Company, CSIRO
