The Trump administration may sell mining lease contracts in the depths of the seas

The US Interior Ministry said on Tuesday that it had started an operation Selling mining lease contracts in the depths of the seas After a startup request Impossible.

The agency said the operation “will evaluate the sale of a possible metal lease in American Samoa.” The administrative procedure requires a publication in the federal registry and seams general comments before considering any sales.

Looking at the tone of the Minister of the Interior statement On this issue, the sale of rent may be a single conclusion.

Interior Minister Doug Burgoum said: “Critical minerals are essential to enhance our nation’s flexibility and protect our national interests.” “By providing opportunities to reach metal resources in the depths of the seas responsible, we support both American economic growth and national security.”

The impossible minerals, an emerging mining company in the depths of the seas, submitted an official request for rental contracts in April.

The company has developed an independent underwater vehicle that was reduced by the crane to the ocean floor, where automated claws are used to seize multi -metal nodules rich in metal. The impossible minerals claim that drones are less disturbing to the ecosystems of deep, fragile water than their competitors, and many of them use voids to lift nodules.

Metal multi -mineral nodules are formed over millions of years, as the minerals that are resolved in sea water accumulate, including manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel and copper. With the spread of the world, the demand for such critical minerals increased. China’s dominance of the main metal markets, such as Cobalt, has also sent companies and governments looking for alternative sources.

The mineral blocks have drew the eye of the prospectors because they contain incredibly high concentrations of minerals, much higher than the Earth’s mines usually recover.

Environmental scientists and ocean scientists have warned that mining in areas rich in complex nodules disrupts fragile ecosystems. Deep life grows slowly, and any disorder there will take decades to wear. one A recent study I found that microbial societies will need 50 years to recover from mining operations.

Sponge and other creatures that grow on the ground can be damaged directly by mining robots, and it will still have to be passed by facing the pillars of deposits that usually pollute clear water. What’s more, the nodules themselves produce oxygen, indicating that they may help researchers I am looking for life on other planets.