Green Economy in a Blue World-Full Report

dispersal of toxicwaste. The technology required for deep-sea mining is still evolving and must be able to operate at great depth and subject to the vagaries of wind, waves and currents. These difficult conditions will require expert management andmaintenance of equipment to ensure that accidents do not occur. In addition, due to the uncertainties surrounding this new venture, adaptive management strategies are requiredwhich incorporate the new information and knowledge which will arise as the industry advances. manganese crusts and manganese nodules are found in very different geological and ecological environments which involve different technological challenges and may necessitate different conservation approaches. The ecosystem services which exist in these potential mining sites may include important fish habitat, scientific research opportunities (especially apparent in the case of hydrothermal systems which offer the chance to study the evolution and adaptation of life under extreme conditions) and potentially valuable genetic resources and chemical compounds. While the mining footprint on hydrothermal massive-sulphide sites is expected to be small in comparison to land-based operations (Scott, 2006), there are still large knowledge gaps in our understanding of the ecosystems Seafloor massive sulphides,

degrading the environmental resources on which local communities and future generations might depend. Today this resource may be fishing, for future generations it may include the biopharmaceuticals which could be discovered from deep-sea species. The challenge is to adequately safeguard environmental values including biodiversity so that future generations have the opportunity to benefit from these resources. It is important that nations fully consider both the economic benefits and potential costs of deep-sea mineral extraction. The benefits of deep-sea minerals derive from the sale of refined metals. The costs comprise two main components: (i) direct costs – the financial costs of mining, transporting, processing, and marketing themetals, and (ii) external costs – the cost of environmental impacts (environmental costs) and opportunity costs such as those arising from the displacement of other uses of the ocean. Notably, some of the external costs might involve the loss of non-market values, such as those attributable to clean water or the existence of a unique ecosystem or species. Deep-sea mining is a new industry with many unknowns, but there are lessons which can be learned from onshore mining and offshore oil and gas extraction. These industries share the need to manage physical habitat destruction, the potential loss of biodiversity and the

in a Blue World

Rare minerals for new technology

Deposits as manganese crusts, cobalt-rich crusts or iron-manganese crusts occur on seamounts and other ocean highs. Their mode of formation favours the absorption of many rare metals in high concentrations. This includes tellurium, cobalt, bismuth, zirconium, niobium, tungsten, molybdenum, platinum, titanium and thorium (Hein, et al., 2010) The high enrichment values of many of these metals compared to the concentrations mined on land, coupled with their general scarcity, may make them an economic proposition in the deep-sea. Currently these metals are used in the production of super alloys commonly known

and a number of new and developing technologies such as solar panels and wind turbines, storage cells and batteries and electronic devices. The rare metals market tends to be dominated by a few players, for example 95% of the world’s supply of tellurium comes from China. Problems with the supply of tellurium have slowed the development of the high performance cadmium – tellurium photovoltaic cell (Hein, et al., 2010). The future of photovoltaics may hinge on the supply of rare metals such as tellurium and in this instance developing states may be able toplay a significant role in the greening of global energy production.

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