Polymetallic nodules on the sea bed floor take millions of years to form.  They are a vital part of the ecosystem that supports life in the deep sea and consequently life on earth.  They also contain highly prized minerals that could be used to manufacture electric vehicle batteries.

The International Seabed Authority was created by the United Nations to protect the sea bed from exploitation and destruction.  The ISA is also charged with prioritizing poor and developing nations sea bed mining interests to create balance and opportunity for all mankind.    

The agency and its secretary general, Michael Lodge, have been and are being compromised by private companies for financial gain, specifically The Metals Company.  The company CEO Gerard Barron has already destroyed sensitive seabed habitat while mining for DeepGreen Metals company. He has stated/believes the polymetallic nodules in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone are ‘just mother nature’s gift to us.’  The Metals Company has obtained leases from the small developing island nations of Nauru and Tonga to mine in the Clipperton zone for less than $150,000 in scholarship and community funding and a promise of $2 per ton of mined materials (less than 0.5% of the materials estimated worth).  Coincidentally the nation of Naura has recently pushed for a deadline to allow mining to commence in 2024.  Many other leases are now being bought and bargained for by private companies with the aid of the International Seabed Authority. 

We know very little about the deap sea bed.  More than 80 percent of the species living there have yet to be discovered and studied.  The ecosystem could be sequestering large amounts of carbon directly or indirectly.  Irreversible permanent damage could be done to the ecosystem, ocean currents and life on earth by such reckless mining. Many scientists, companies and governments are committing to a moratorium on deep sea mining.  

Please ask your government officials, employers, friends and families to commit to the moratorium.  Shop Electric Vehicles wisely and boycott products and businesses involved in destructive deep sea mining.  PLEASE SHARE THIS PETITION ON SOCIAL MEDIA so we can inform as many people as possible.  Thank you

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/29/world/deep-sea-mining.html?smid=url-share New York times article “Secret Data, Tiny Islands and a Quest for Treasure on the Ocean Floor,” by Eric Lipton

https://youtu.be/bUCk_THAPNQIn Too Deep by Deep Sea Conservation Coalition 

www.savethehighseas.org for a list of companies and EV manufacturers making the commitment