Deep-Seabed Mining

Deep-seabed mining involves the exploration and exploitation of mineral resources on the seabed, including polymetallic nodules, sulphide deposits and cobalt-rich crusts, which contain minerals such as cobalt, manganese, nickel and copper. The International Seabed Authority (ISA), established under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), has the exclusive competence to regulate mineral-related activities in the seabed beyond national jurisdiction, known as “the Area”, and is responsible for protecting the marine environment from the harmful effects of deep-seabed mining. The Area and its resources are the common heritage of humankind, and mining activities in the Area must be carried out for the benefit of humankind as a whole. While exploration is ongoing, commercial exploitation in the Area has not yet commenced as the ISA is still negotiating its Mining Code. The deep sea remains one of the least understood places on Earth. Deep-seabed mining poses severe and potentially irreversible risks to deep-sea ecosystems and could disrupt the Ocean’s vital functions, including carbon storage. Allowing mining to proceed without adequate scientific understanding of its environmental impacts risks causing serious harm to the marine environment and undermining the Human Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment. Greenlighting deep-seabed mining in the face of such uncertainty could be a colossal mistake.

Our Legal Counsel and deep-seabed mining lead, Samantha Robb, closely monitors developments at the ISA and has attended its meetings in Jamaica in person since 2023 with ISA observer, the Deep Ocean Stewardship Initiative. She has authored legal papers examining States’ obligations under and gaps in the ISA’s governance regime, interactions between Ocean governance frameworks, and the interconnection between deep-seabed mining and Human Rights. Our deep-seabed mining work spans regulatory analysis, legal opinions, strategic advice, research and litigation strategy for States, civil society and Indigenous communities. This has included detailed analysis of and commentary on the development of the ISA’s Mining Code, comparative reviews of national deep-seabed mining legislation and advice on States’ obligations in relation to unilateral mining. We develop and assess potential litigation strategies to strengthen accountability and challenge conduct that threatens the marine environment. We also work on questions of effective Indigenous participation and rights within the ISA framework, benefit sharing and the common heritage of humankind, and the intersections between deep-seabed mining and Human Rights, especially the Human Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment. Our work combines specialist technical expertise in the international deep-seabed mining regime with our broader knowledge of Ocean governance, marine protection and Human Rights law to identify legal avenues for stronger environmental protection and accountability.