Deep Sea Minerals - Vol 3 - Cobalt-rich Ferromanganese Crusts

Key Messages for environmental management

Baseline studies of animal composition, distribution, and abun- dance are necessary before exploitation begins, and they must be followed by a regular monitoring program. Multidisciplinary science will be required, involving collabora- tion among industry, academia, relevant communities or inter- est groups and government agencies. Ferromanganese-crust mining on deep seamounts will have im- pacts on both species and habitats. Impacts should be mitigat- ed by effective management strategies that reflect the ecosys- tem approach and the precautionary principle. Environmental management plans will be situation-specific, but should include a combination of best-practice mining operation to reduce environmental impacts and spatial management that protects similar areas and communities from impact. Continued wide-ranging involvement by mining companies, pol- icy makers, lawyers, managers, economists, scientists, conser- vation agencies, NGOs, and societal representatives will be an important element of successful management of the deep sea minerals sector in the Pacific Islands region.

Scientific knowledge is limited in deep sea ferromanganese crust environments in the western Pacific, but sufficient infor- mation exists from global seamount research – especially in the Pacific around New Zealand, Australia, and Hawaii – to guide initial environmental management decisions. Seamount ecosystems are highly variable, but they can be hotspots of biodiversity and localised species abundance. Ferro- manganese crust habitats can host high densities of sessile bio- genic fauna that are vulnerable to physical disturbance. Some species may have a wide geographical and depth distribution, but this needs to be balanced against biological characteristics (such as physical structure, slow growth, specific colonisation factors) that can make such communities highly sensitive to im- pacts and slow to recover. Successful management of deep sea mining is reliant on a co- operative and integrated approach among all stakeholders. The southwest Pacific has a well-developed fisheries management regime in place for tuna fisheries. Hence, it is important to en- sure that environmental management options for mining are compatible and consistent with those for fisheries.

COBALT-RICH FERROMANGANESE CRUSTS 38