E-Paper
The oceans need our laissez-faire
What a technology-led society we are becoming. New plans are afoot, amid intense opposition, for ocean mining— the ocean bed will be dug out to extract precious
What a technology-led society we are becoming. New plans are afoot, amid intense opposition, for ocean mining— the ocean bed will be dug out to extract precious minerals, even gold and silver. Prospecting has already begun. China intends to use robots to go prospect the bottom of the ocean.
A Canadian company is looking for money to setup large machines to start the process in a part of the ocean near Papua New Guinea.
Does this makes any sense at all? The oceans are one of the great sinks of carbon — and science warns us that they are now unable to absorb much. In some parts, they are turning acidic, which means the rich and wonderful life could all die off.
In any case, we scarcely know much about the unexplored ocean life forms. What we do know is that they are key to human survival in many ways. And as anyone can see, the spectacular life forms — from corals, and planktons to sharks — must be nurtured and protected. Mining won’t do that. The Papua New Guinea plan threatens the magnificent sperm whales, for example.
There is no case to be made for ocean mining in an era when countries are recycling e-waste to make Olympic medals and it is clear our survival is dependent on using less stuff and living more smartly. Economically and ecologically, we simply cannot afford to jump into this misadventure, just because the technology available can achieve it.
(The writer is director, Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group)
