PETITION ORGANIZED BY OCEAN GEOGRAPHIC FOR A HEALTHY OCEAN PLANET

We call on the Singapore Government to join 32 other nations in banning or enacting a moratorium to pause deep-sea mining. Deep-sea mining poses unprecedented risks to marine biodiversity and the health of our oceans.

CALL TO ACTION - Sign this petition and URGE SINGAPORE TO TAKE A DEFINITIVE STAND IN PROTECTING OUR MARINE ECOSYSTEMS. As it stands, the risks are not comprehensively understood, alternatives have not been fully explored and responsibly applied, informed consent has not been given by Indigenous peoples and affected communities, the public has not been thoroughly informed, it has not been demonstrated that mining can be conducted in a non-destructive way, and an official Mining Code has not yet been adopted by the International Seabed Authority. An extractive industry with such a broadly destructive capacity cannot be allowed to operate in such a manner. 

"It’s not realistic to think that we could get sufficient metals from the deep sea at anything close to a reasonable cost, and that’s before we even think about factoring in the value loss for the planet. There’s this whole other invisible side of the balance sheet: the loss of knowledge, unknown libraries of knowledge that will never, and could never, be recreated. That’s the real cost. Our highest priority in the 21st century must be maintaining places that are still in good shape. Half the coral reefs are still doing reasonably well, there are kelp forests that haven’t yet been destroyed, there are still seagrass meadows, marshes, deserts, and rain forests, and we must prioritize protecting them. The same is the case with our deep-sea environments. The metals that are being used for the Green Revolution are already in landfills. We need to mine what’s already been mined. We need to be mindful of what happens to our cell phones, computers and complex electronics instead of just ditching them and throwing them away. It would be a whole lot easier, safer, and more reliable, to recycle the valuable components of used electronics than extracting them from the sea. So, putting it all together, deep-sea mining doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t even make dollars and cents. It’s just an empty marketing scheme. The ocean isn’t empty though. It’s filled with incredible creatures that enrich our world in every possible way. Kids can see it, why can’t adults?"

                                                                                         - Dr. Sylvia Earle

BRIEF - THE DEEP OCEAN IS ONE OF THE WORLD’S LARGEST, MOST DELICATE, AND VITAL ECOSYSTEMS. It is also an area of growing economic interest due to the presence of polymetallic nodules, approximately potato-sized, round formations found on the ocean floor composed of a mixture of valuable metals, typically including nickel, copper, cobalt, manganese, and iron. Companies involved in deep-sea mining aim to exploit the seabed, effectively dividing shared ocean resources for corporate gain. Scientists caution that the extraction of these resources raises serious environmental concerns, as mining activities would destroy fragile deep-sea ecosystems. 

A recent study found that polymetallic nodules are electrically charged, a property that allows them to catalyze seawater electrolysis resulting in the production of “dark oxygen” in deep-sea habitats, a function that would cease if they were removed, altering the fundamental makeup of these unique ecosystems by depriving them of oxygen. MINING COULD ALSO NEGATIVELY IMPACT COASTAL COMMUNITIES AND INTERFERE WITH NATURAL CARBON STORAGE PROCESSES, POTENTIALLY INTENSIFYING THE CLIMATE CRISIS. Due to how challenging it is to study the deep sea, there is much left to learn about these ecosystems and the species that live there, making it all the more imperative that we avoid destroying these habitats that would likely never recover. 

 Seabed mining activities are governed by the International Seabed Authority (ISA). The ISA is an autonomous organization established under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1994 to regulate mineral-related activities in the international seabed area, which is beyond national jurisdiction and covers around 54% of the total area of the world’s oceans. Part of the ISA’s purpose is to ensure that seabed mining activities are conducted in a manner that minimizes environmental impact and promotes sustainable practices. Considering that REMOVING THESE NODULES WOULD ALSO REMOVE THE FOUNDATION OF ENTIRE DEEP-SEA ECOSYSTEMS, IT STANDS TO REASON THAT SUSTAINABILITY AND PROTECTION WOULD BE ANTITHETICAL TO MINING.

This extractive industry is at a turning point. According to the ISA’s website, it has entered into 31, 15-year exploration contracts with 22 contractors that seek to eventually mine polymetallic nodules, polymetallic sulphides, and cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts in seven different deep-sea locations around the world’s oceans. So far, 32 governments have called for some form of ban, precautionary pause, or moratorium on deep-sea mining until its ecological impacts can be better understood. We need governments to prevent the start of this harmful new extractive industry and permanently protect the deep sea from mining activities.

In Singapore, one company (Ocean Mineral Singapore-OMS) has been granted a license to conduct exploration studies for deep-sea mining in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. As per Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry, Gan Kim Young, OMS signed an exploration contract with the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in 2015, showing clearly that Singapore unfortunately intends to engage in this new extractive activity as soon as they are given the green light. As a nation that prides itself on leading the Asia-Pacific region in sustainable development, Singapore should instead seize this once-in-a-generation opportunity to speak up for the ocean and publicly support nothing less than a precautionary pause on deep-sea mining. SIGN THIS PETITION AND JOIN US IN CALLING ON SINGAPORE TO STAND UP FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND TAKE A STAND AGAINST DEEP-SEA MINING.

This petition was officially launched on November 8th at the closing session of the Blue Eco Summit organized by Ocean Geographic at ONE°15 Marina Sentosa Cove, Singapore.

This call for the Singapore government to implement a moratorium on deep-sea mining is supported by Dr. Sylvia Earle, Ocean Geographic’s Honorary Board of Advisors and Editors, and all the speakers and delegates at the Blue Eco Summit. 

JOIN US ALL IN ASKING SINGAPORE TO STAND UP FOR THE ENVIRONMENT AND TAKE A STAND AGAINST DEEP-SEA MINING.