Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival 2024

Commercial scale deep sea mining is just over the horizon and many people don't know what it really is, what it will involve, and what the potential impacts will be on animals both on the seafloor as well as in the water column. Deep sea mining focuses on 3 types of deposits: Mn nodules, MN crusts, and massive sulphide deposits. The extraction of these different types of deposits will require different types of technology, which to date, have proven to be difficult to develop due to the extreme conditions in the deep ocean. Furthermore, all three types of deposits will result in impacts that could potentially be catastrophic for the marine environment. This talk will introduce the different types of deep sea mining to the audience, explaining where and how commercial operations will likely begin, and why there is concern about the regulation of this industry and its potential impacts. It's the speaker's contention that deep sea mining must occur to support the development of green technology, but mining techniques must be developed first in order to ensure this new industry has the lowest impacts possible to the environment.