US Deep-Sea Mining Claim Areas Rival ISA Licenses in Size
A Mongabay analysis found that in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone, companies have applied to the US government or been granted rights to seabed areas equal to about half the expanse designated for mining by the International Seabed Authority. Most applications to the US were made within the past year and a half, and some applicants also seek commercial recovery permits that NOAA could approve to allow extraction and sale of minerals. No company has yet submitted an exploitation application to the ISA, and commercial-scale seabed mining has not begun anywhere.
Why it matters: It bears on the briefing's theme of ocean governance, since US claims and permits in international waters raise legal questions about authority over the seabed and the multilateral ISA system.