February 24, 2025

Deep Sea Mining and Seabed Ecosystems – how we gather the evidence

Deep sea mining for minerals from the seabed is increasingly being considered as a potential solution to the expected global shortage of raw materials including lithium, nickel, cobalt and manganese. Demand for these minerals is increasing and some in industry and government argue that deep-sea mining could be vital in the provision of transition-critical materials which will help in the race to meet net zero targets. However, the issue is controversial with some arguing that it should never be allowed because it would damage the oceans and its ecosystems beyond repair.

In the middle of this debate are the research scientists and experts of the National Oceanography Centre (NOC), tasked with evaluating the current ecosystems and the potential scientific impact of any future mining on the marine environment. 

In 2023 and 2024, NOC carried out two research expeditions to provide environmental baseline monitoring of the biodiversity in the area – establishing the diversity of life that exists to understand what could be threatened and how it could be impacted by deep-sea mining (for polymetallic nodule exploration). The SMC invited NOC to come in to talk about their research in this area, explain how science can inform these global debates and answer questions about this important and sensitive area of research.

The experts shared findings from their recent expeditions, specifically from the SMARTEX expeditions in the Clarion Clipperton Zone which aimed to better understand the ecosystem in the Pacific abyss and how the different components interact and interconnect.

Speakers included:

Professor Daniel Jones, Ocean BioGeosciences, Principal Investigator of SMARTEX, NOC

Alan Evans, Head of Marine Policy, NOC 

Dr Tammy Horton, Deep Sea Biodiversity Research Lead, NOC