Existing environmental management approaches relevant to deep-sea mining

Jones, D., Durden, J., Murphy, K., Gjerde, K., Gebricka, A., Colaco, A., Morato, T., Cuvelier, D. and Billett, D. (2019) Existing environmental management approaches relevant to deep-sea mining. Marine Policy. 103, 172-181.

Ecological management and conservation would be needed to mitigate potential stresses that could be caused by deep-seabed mining. For deep-seabed mining companies to be able to act transparently and responsibly, a legal and regulatory framework is needed.

By adapting existing management approaches and extending new systems of reporting and governance, environmental impacts of deep-seabed mining can be better understood and reduced. The paper illustrates this claim with the introduction of management tools for the Clarion-Clipperton Zone by the International Seabed Authority.

The advent of a new industry such as deep-seabed mining presents the opportunity to lay solid foundations of adaptable evidence-based policies, ensuring companies act responsibly and transparently.

The full paper can be found here.