Impacts of Deep Sea Mining. Phil Weaver Seascape Consultants Romsey, UK

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1 Impacts of Deep Sea Mining Phil Weaver Seascape Consultants Romsey, UK MIN_GUIDE annual mee?ng, Brussels, December, 2017

2 Three types of Deep Sea Mineral Mn-Nodules grow around a nucleus on sedimented abyssal plains ( m) Ni, Co, Cu, Mo, Mn Cobalt Crusts grow on the flanks of old volcanoes ( m) Co, Ni, Cu (plus others e.g. Pt, Te, Zr rare earths) Massive Sulphides form along mid-ocean ridges or at young active volcanoes ( m) Cu, Au, Zn, Ag

Environmental impacts of Deep-sea Mining Light, pollu?on the surface support vessel Trans-shipment plume Returned water plume par?cle load, toxicity, temperature, nutrient load Noise, vibra?

3 Environmental impacts of Deep-sea Mining Light, pollu?on the surface support vessel Trans-shipment plume Returned water plume par?cle load, toxicity, temperature, nutrient load Noise, vibra?on Large area impacted (species connec?vity, changes to ecosystem func?on, slow recovery) Genera?on of benthic plume Re-deposi?on of surficial sediment layer Sediment compac?on Substrate removal

4 Comparison of land based and deep-sea mining footprints per million tons of ore Deep sea mining activity Deep-sea area required per million tons mined ore Area required to produce same products on land Nodule mining 80 km km 2 Cobalt crust mining km km 2 Sulphide mining km km 2

5 Red box = 5,300 million km 2 Manganese nodule contracts in the Pacific Ocean

6 Environmental Issues manganese nodules Poorly understood ecosystem Many species few individuals of each Long-lived animals - slow recovery Stable environment Large scale of mining Image courtesy Dan Jones National Oceanography Centre, Southampton

Manganese nodule mining on abyssal plains

Sponges colonising dead sponge stalk, along

7 Manganese nodule mining on abyssal plains Graneledone sp. deep sea octopus brooding eggs on dead sponge stalk. Sponges colonising dead sponge stalk, along with amphipods, isopods, barnacle. Fauna attaches to nodules and to sponge stalks Marcon et al MIDAS final meeting

8 Extremely slow recovery of ecosystems This area in the French claim in the Clarion Clipperton Zone was dredged 26 years before this photograph was taken. IFREMER

9 Impact of Plumes Clouds of sediment laden water generated by the collector vehicle Dewatering of ores on the ship will also generate a plume that will be added to the ocean Will contain par?culates and may contain toxic chemicals Courtesy Andy Dale SAMS, UK

10 Poten>al aerial impact of plumes on the seabed Manganese nodule claim area max 75,000 km 2 Mineable area Area affected by plume Mineable area Area affected by plume Mineable area

11 Poten>al aerial impact of plumes on the seabed with good engineering design Manganese nodule claim area max 75,000 km 2 Area affected by plume Area affected by plume Mineable area Mineable area

12 Why is this loss of habitat and poor ecosystem recovery important? UNCLOS Article 145 Protection of the marine environment Necessary measures shall be taken in accordance with this Convention with respect to activities in the Area to ensure effective protection for the marine environment from harmful effects which may arise from such activities. To this end the Authority shall adopt appropriate rules, regulations and procedures for inter alia :.....(b) the protection and conservation of the natural resources of the Area and the prevention of damage to the flora and fauna of the marine environment.

Cobalt crust mining on seamounts Environmental issues Diverse ecosystem with many species, not well studied Stable ecosystem slow growing, slow to reproduce so recovery difficult Large scale of

13 Cobalt crust mining on seamounts Environmental issues Diverse ecosystem with many species, not well studied Stable ecosystem slow growing, slow to reproduce so recovery difficult Large scale of mining Image courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas. 3 signed contracts in the Pacific (plus 1 unsigned), 1 in the S. Atlan?c Total area for explora?on 15,000 km 2

Sulphide mining on ocean ridges Environmental Issues Very specialised fauna Linear distribution of vents Depends on distribution of mines

14 Sulphide mining on ocean ridges Environmental Issues Very specialised fauna Linear distribution of vents Depends on distribution of mines Exomar_Rainbow_Rimicaris Courtesy of IFREMER 2 signed contracts plus 1 unsigned in the Atlan?c and 4 signed contracts Indian Ocean. Total area for explora?on 70,000 km2

15 Hydrothermal Figure 1. Deep-sea vent hydrothermal biogeographical vent systems that require provinces conserva>on. Chown SL (2012) Antarctic Marine Biodiversity and Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents. PLoS Biol 10(1): e doi: / journal.pbio

16 Poten>al geochemical impacts From Hauton et al., Frontiers in Marine Science In press

The spreading axis is indicated by the redline.

17 Prospec>ng away from the ridge axis Regional bathymetry of the central Mid-Atlantic Ridge showing the location of the French exploration license blocks for massive sulphides (green squares). Each square is 100 km2 in size. The spreading axis is indicated by the redline. The white area shows the increase in the area that could be prospective for massive sulphides assuming a corridor of only 20 km on both sides of the spreading axis From Petersen et al, 2017 Responsabilité & Environnement

18 Sulphide mining away from the ridge axis Environmental Issues Fauna not well studied Long-lived animals Slow recovery Potential for toxic pollution Depends on distribution of mines Credit: IFE, URI-IAO, UW, Lost City Science Party; NOAA/OAR/OER; The Lost City 2005 Expedition.

19 Conclusions 1. The areal impact of mining nodules and crusts will be large in comparison to mines on land or to polymetallic sulphide mining 2. The impacted areas could become very large if plumes are not reduced to a minimum through smart engineering design 3. Recovery of ecosystems at nodule and crust mining sites is likely to be very slow (several tens to hundreds of years or even more) 4. Mining sulphides away from the ridges may have a rela?vely small environmental footprint, but plumes s?ll need to be limited

20 MIDAS summary publications Available from

Managing Impacts of Deep-seA resource exploitation - the MIDAS project. Phil Weaver Seascape Consultants Romsey, UK

Managing Impacts of Deep-seA resource exploitation - the MIDAS project Phil Weaver Seascape Consultants Romsey, UK Seas at Risk workshop, Brussels 5 th November 2014 Total number of ISA Contractors Number