"Seafloor mining decisions held over for another year", 2 August 2023

Mining the deep ocean is on hold for the moment after the International Seabed Authority postponed making a decision until its next annual session.

Member states opted not to open the seafloor to mining companies, instead delaying discussions on the matter until July next year.

With a two-year trigger pulled by Nauru in July 2021 now expired, nations can apply to the ISA for it to consider applications for mining licences.

In meetings tied up by administrative discussions and a difficult negotiation process over the past fortnight, it was agreed that rules governing mining of the seabed would continue to be developed with a view to their adoption in 2025

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During the course of the meeting, which has taken place over recent weeks in Kingston, Jamaica, other states joined the call for a moratorium on seabed mining.

Canada and Brazil along with other major economies like France, Germany, Chile, Costa Rica, Finland, Sweden, Portugal, Ireland, Switzerland and New Zealand, plus several other nations, are seeking a moratorium on mining. A motion put forward by France, Chile and Costa Rica to halt mining was knocked back during the discussions.

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