Activists take part at a “Look Down action” rally to stop deep sea mining outside the European Parliament in Brussels on March 6, 2023. (Photo by Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD / AFP)
By LiCAS.news
Jul 18 2023
The study focused on the environmental consequences of Japan’s first successful test in 2020 to extract cobalt crusts from the Takuyo-Daigo deep-sea mountains in the northwest Pacific Ocean, an area rich in cobalt, a vital mineral for electric vehicle batteries.
The findings revealed that even a short two-hour mining test caused a significant decrease in fish and shrimp populations in the surrounding vicinity.
The study, published in the Current Biology journal, analyzed data collected one month before and after the mining test, as well as one year later.
The results indicated that the areas directly affected by sediment pollution from the mining test experienced a 43 percent drop in fish and shrimp density.
The surrounding areas showed a 56 percent decline in fish and shrimp density, possibly due to contamination of fish food sources caused by the mining test.
Travis Washburn, the study’s author and a marine ecologist working closely with the Geological Survey of Japan, expressed surprise at the significant impact of the short mining test.
Read full text in LiCAS.news.
