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Ban Mining for manganese nodules in the deep sea

I am very concerned when I hear the plans to mine/explore the deep sea. After we as humanity have fully committed to burning fossil fuels, deforestation and decimating the number of wild animals; now it's the turn of the deep sea. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to realize that life there is going to get an indescribable (read: deadly) blow.

Do we really learn nothing at all from our past and are people still only concerned with short-term (own) gain?

Manganese nodules have been formed over millions of years and, in addition to manganese and iron, also consist of more precious metals such as cobalt, nickel, molybdenum and platinum. These metals are essential for the energy transition, it is said. They are needed for immensely large quantities of batteries and accumulators. In cars, at houses. To store electrical energy.

The energy transition that is being discussed is no more than switching to electricity in combination with batteries and accumulators. That is too short sighted for me if we need so many precious metals for those energy carriers.

As far as I am concerned, we are focusing much more on switching to hydrogen as an energy carrier. Hydrogen is relatively easy to produce with wind and solar energy. It can go to factories and homes via the same gas network that is currently available. Cars can run on a hydrogen cell with a much smaller battery than currently used in electric cars. These hydrogen cars are much lighter than their electric counterpart. Loading of roads, fire hazard and recycling of batteries (you hear shockingly little about that) are all less of a problem.

A lot is being done in the field of green hydrogen production. Sunny countries with a lot of wind and countries where hydropower is available are busy investigating the feasibility of such projects. What is missing, however, is the -essential- demand side. Switching to hydrogen means quite a bit. How about the investments required in the steel industry, aviation, adjustments to the gas network, the car industry that first worked fully on battery-powered models and now has to switch to the development of hydrogen cars, plus the worldwide converting all pumping stations, etc?

Everything (supply and demand) will have to happen hand-in-hand. This requires strong leadership or direction. This cannot come from the various private initiatives, but must be directed by the government.

Forging strategic alliances between countries on the one hand is a prerequisite. Regulation and clarity for the longer term for companies and the private market is a second but also indispensable element.

Sucking up manganese nodules from the seabed is completely unnecessary and - just as fossil fuels were not - is not the solution for the distant future.

BY Aris Begemann