CANADA - An abrupt announcement rattled members of a little-known UN agency based in Jamaica, that has protected international deep-sea waters for more than 30 years.
The Metals Company in Vancouver, Canada, said late Thursday that it is seeking permission from the US government to start deep-sea mining in international waters, potentially bypassing the International Seabed Authority, which has the power to authorise exploitation permits, but has yet to do so.
“It would be a major breach of international law … if the US were to grant it,” said Duncan Currie, an international and environmental lawyer and legal adviser to the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition, a Netherlands-based alliance of environmental groups.
The Metals Company seeks seafloor minerals like cobalt, copper, nickel and manganese used in electric car batteries and other green technology. (Jamaica Gleaner/AP)
