What's right: Norway suspends deep-sea mining

ARA City Radio

Norway has halted its deep-sea mining plans in the Arctic following pressure from the Socialist Left Party (SV) and growing environmental concerns. The pause affects a controversial initiative to extract metals essential for renewable energy technologies, including copper, cobalt, zinc, and rare earth elements. These resources, crucial for batteries and wind turbines, are located in a 280,000-square-kilometer area between Svalbard and Greenland. Critics, including WWF, warn that mining could devastate fragile marine ecosystems, with risks like sediment plumes, underwater noise, and harm to unique species near hydrothermal vents. Legal challenges are ongoing, and calls for stricter impact studies are growing. Globally, deep-sea mining remains contentious. Countries like China, Russia, and Japan are exploring international waters, with licenses issued by the UN’s International Seabed Authority (ISA). However, large-scale mining hasn’t begun due to incomplete regulations. Amid these debates, 32 countries and over 50 companies, including Apple and Google, have called for a moratorium, emphasizing environmental risks and insufficient research. Norway’s decision to suspend its plans could influence global policy, underscoring the urgent need to prioritize ecological protection over resource extraction.