NOAA finalizes rule to streamline U.S. seabed-mining applications

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration finalized a new rule making it easier for companies to apply for the right to mine the deep ocean floor, and the next day the Metals Company submitted an application that more than doubled the area it said it hopes to mine. The rule streamlines commercial and exploratory applications into a single process, cutting in half the number of required environmental assessments and public-comment periods.

Kim Doster, a NOAA spokeswoman, said the revised rule "doesn’t eliminate protections — it consolidates them into one efficient process," and argued that promoting seabed mining would reduce U.S. reliance on Chinese technology and help secure critical minerals. The Metals Company celebrated the change, with a spokesman writing that "nearly 50 years after this industry took shape, it’s ready to move forward," and the company is proposing to mine about 65,000 square kilometers of the Clarion-Clipperton Zone; its chief executive told a House subcommittee he was "highly confident" permits would be granted this year.

Environmental groups, scientists and some lawmakers warned of risks. Democrats at the hearing raised economic and environmental concerns, with Representative Yassamin Ansari saying that based on what she had seen, deep-sea mining was not a "smart, responsible way" to obtain needed minerals.

Key Topics

Politics, Noaa, Clarion-clipperton Zone, International Seabed Authority, Deep-sea Mining, American Samoa