We continue our journey through the Green Economy topics covered in the European Blue Economy Report. In the Save Our Ocean of today we will talk about the deep sea mining, detaching ourselves a bit from what is written in the report itself (which speaks of it only in terms of possible economic gain), for see the pros and cons of a solution that could be more serious than the problem.
Before starting, I remind you that you can find a list of the articles in this series, constantly updated and ordered according to thematic categories, by visiting this index.
With deep sea mining we refer, clearly, to the extraction of mining material from the rocky conformations present on the deepest seabeds, between 1400 and 3700 meters below sea level. Basically there are two techniques for this type of extraction: the continuous basket system (CLB) and the hydraulic suction system. Both, however, work on the same principle: transport part of the seabed to the surface to filter it, take the materials involved and return the rest to the abyss.
The main big advantage of the submarine mines, to the point that it has often been talked about a second "gold rush", is represented by the HUGE presence of rare minerals (manganese, nickel, cobalt, tellurium, etc.), well above the quantities present in the terrestrial fields, which are used to produce electronic elements or technologies for renewable energy such as solar panels and wind turbines. The exploitation of these resources would allow to considerably speed up the development of the Green Economy as well as alleviate the exploitation of land mines, often located in countries that do not take care of workers' rights and there are no problems in exploiting minors even for heavy work.
Suffice it to say that in 2017, a team of British researchers, discovered that the Tropic Seamount, an underwater mountain of 3000 meters, contains a deposit of tellurium, the material at the base of the realization of the solar panels, with a concentration 50,000 times higher than that of terrestrial deposits. According to estimates, in Tropic Seamount alone, there would be 2670 tons of tellurium, capable ALONE to cover one twelfth of current world consumption.
Fantastic, so why aren't we running to extract all these resources? In reality there are several reasons we can divide into three macro-groups. The first concerns the environmental impact given by the presence of machinery for extraction. There is therefore talk of waste, underwater noise and lights that could not only damage the health of the sea, but also disturb the fauna and the flora. Speaking of very deep seabeds, we talk about places full of life and at the base of the health of the oceans themselves, environmental sanctuaries that at the moment have been protected and rarely touched. Deep sea mining could change all that.
The second dilemma concerns the impact that the extraction itself could have on marine life. The sea at that depth is still today a dark and unknown place where, despite the total lack of light, there are living beings with a very low degree of resilience which are, however, at the base of the marine food chain and whose disappearance would be very serious for the survival of the ecosystem. Despite numerous studies on this subject, there are still no concrete results on how these organisms would react to the consequences of mining. It is true that most of the seabed is returned once filtered, but (1) this generates huge marine earth clouds, (2) there is no guarantee that this land will be inhabited again and (3) even if it was, it would take time to bring back the organisms present to the quantities that were before the extraction.
All this would be easily solved if we expected the results of the sector studies and produced adequate regulations to be respected, but here we come to the third problem: human nature. Many maintain that, although in the presence of strict regulation, the exploitation of mineral resources would develop in an uncontrolled way because it was entrusted to private companies, notoriously more interested in profit than environmental protection. This is demonstrated by the fact that many companies are already active in this sector despite the fact that they lack the necessary security to guarantee the survival of the environment.
As mentioned above, many private companies have already moved and are particularly active in this sector. The situation was quickly becoming risky and, for this reason, in 2018 the European Parliament met and voted in favor of the suspension of mining activities in the seabed. A preventive moratorium which will remain active until the environmental repercussions that these procedures may have are known in a safe and scientific manner. Unfortunately this suspension applies only to Europe, while in many other countries (for example Canada, China and Japan) the seabed is being exploited without too many worries.
Fortunately, many realities are trying to change (or convince other companies to change) their mentality. If it is true that the global economy needs resources, these may not necessarily come from the sea. Especially with regard to the electronic components, the recycling of the minerals already used is not only possible, but also advisable. It is a production method that is slowly taking hold, also thanks to the fact that many large companies (including Apple) have started using it. About It, you can look at this interesting video.
Lastly, there are those who claim that instead of looking for underwater mineral resources, we should start looking for them in the sky. Many astrophysicists claim that with the same investments used in deep sea mining, we could extract the same minerals from asteroids. Many of these are in fact equally rich in rare earths and the sacrifice of some distant minor body of the solar system could lead to greater integrity of our planet.
METSTRADE is the world's largest trade fair for equipment, materials, and systems for recreational....
Our team is ready for the 63rd Genoa International Boat Show from 21 to 26 September.
METSTRADE IS the world’s largest trade exhibition of leisure marine equipment, materials....
For over 30 years Tecnoseal has been present at the Genoa International Boat Show, whose 2022....
Il 2021 ci vede di nuovo presenziare ai principali eventi mondiali dedicati alla nautica e....
.jpg)
NACA family is growing! Tecnoseal is glad to announce that new products have been introduced....
Anche per il 2020 Tecnoseal ha preso parte come espositore al Salone Nautico Internazionale....
Tecnoseal is pleased to announce the arrival of the MY BOAT QR CODE. Born from the union between....
