Plans to harvest polymetallic nodules from the floor of the Pacific Ocean have encountered strong legal opposition. Environmental groups commissioned a legal review that concludes Swiss-Dutch company Allseas is acting in violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The legal opinion was prepared by André Nollkaemper, Professor of International Law at the University of Amsterdam, at the request of Greenpeace Netherlands. The review focuses on a contract signed in May between Allseas and The Metals Company. The partners aim to develop and deploy the world’s first commercial system for collecting polymetallic nodules from the deep ocean floor. These seabed deposits contain metals essential for a range of industrial sectors.
The proposed system is designed to collect up to 3 million wet tonnes of nodules annually. Two underwater collection vehicles would operate at depths exceeding four kilometers. Supporters argue that deep-sea mining could reduce the need for large-scale open-pit mining on land. Opponents, however, have long warned of potentially severe impacts on marine ecosystems.
According to Professor Nollkaemper, the threat posed by deep-sea mining is no longer hypothetical but imminent and tangible. Greenpeace expressed an even stronger position, claiming that Allseas is prepared to cooperate with the U.S. administration in exploiting the ocean for private profit while bypassing international oversight mechanisms.
The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea protects the international seabed from unilateral exploitation. Authority over such activities rests with the International Seabed Authority (ISA). However, despite more than a decade of negotiations, the ISA has yet to finalize regulations governing commercial deep-sea mining. The Metals Company has taken a different approach, obtaining authorization for its activities through U.S. authorities.
The legal opinion also places responsibility on the Dutch government. According to the lawyers involved, Dutch authorities have a legal obligation to intervene and prevent what they describe as a violation of international law. Greenpeace, together with five other environmental organizations, has already sent an urgent letter to the Dutch government demanding immediate action to stop corporate participation in unregulated deep-sea mining activities.
The debate is increasingly shifting from scientific concerns to legal confrontation. If the Dutch government accepts the environmental groups’ arguments, the world’s first commercial polymetallic nodule mining project could face a significant political and regulatory obstacle.
Source: MINING.COM
Image: The Metals Company
