Deep-sea mining to turn oceans into ‘new industrial frontier’
by Matthew Taylor Environment correspondent from Environment | The Guardian on (#4JDGT)
Greenpeace report reveals 29 floor-exploration licences have been granted worldwide
The world's oceans are facing a "new industrial frontier" from a fledgling deep-sea mining industry as companies line up to extract metals and minerals from some of the most important ecosystems on the planet, a report has found.
The study by Greenpeace revealed that although no mining had started on the ocean floor, 29 exploration licences had been issued covering an area five times bigger than the UK. Environmentalists said the proposed mining would threaten not only crucial ecosystems but the global fight against climate breakdown.
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