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[By Kolaia Raisele and\u00a0Aidan Craney]<\/em><\/p>\n In recent years, Pacific island nations have\u00a0earned\u00a0global credibility\u00a0as champions of climate action. Pacific leaders view sea level rise as an existential threat.<\/p>\n But this united front is now under strain as some Pacific nations pursue a controversial new industry \u2013 deep-sea mining. Nauru, the Cook Islands, Kiribati and Tonga have gone the furthest to make it a reality, attracted by new income streams. But nations such as Fiji, Palau and Vanuatu have called for a moratorium on deep-sea mining in international waters.<\/p>\n Public opinion across the Pacific is often divided, pitting possible economic gains against the potential risks of an industry whose\u00a0environmental impact\u00a0remain\u00a0uncertain\u00a0but\u00a0potentially significant. As this tension intensifies, it may split the Pacific and risk the region\u2019s moral authority on climate.<\/p>\n What are the concerns over deep-sea mining?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Deep-sea mining targets\u00a0three types\u00a0of mineral deposits \u2013 polymetallic nodules strewn across deep underwater plains, cobalt-rich crusts on seamounts, and the\u00a0ore deposits\u00a0around hydrothermal vents.<\/p>\n To extract them, mining companies can use\u00a0unmanned collectors\u00a0to pump ore to the surface and return the wastewater. This creates plumes of sediment which\u00a0can smother\u00a0marine life. Methods of minimizing damage to species from mining on land are\u00a0largely unworkable\u00a0at depth.<\/p>\n Deep-sea ecosystems are poorly understood, but we know they are slow to recover. Researchers\u00a0have found\u00a0areas mined as a test more than 40 years ago still show physical damage and immobile corals and sponges remain scarce.<\/p>\n Why is there so much interest in deep-sea mining?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Deep-sea mining hasn\u2019t begun anywhere in earnest, because the International Seabed Authority has\u00a0yet to finalize\u00a0rules governing extraction. This authority\u00a0oversees the 54%\u00a0of the world\u2019s oceans beyond territorial waters.<\/p>\n But plans for deep-sea mining operations can still be submitted and considered\u00a0without these rules in place.<\/p>\n Analysts have estimated seabed minerals could be worth a staggering\u00a0A$30 trillion. Some of the richest deposits lie in the\u00a0Clarion-Clipperton Zone\u00a0in international waters between Hawaii and Mexico, thousands of kilometers away from Pacific nations. Under\u00a0international law, companies cannot mine in international waters on their own. They need to be officially sponsored by a national government, which has to keep\u00a0effective control\u00a0over its operations.<\/p>\n One reason deep-sea mining companies see Pacific states as such useful partners is that these countries can access\u00a0reserved areas\u00a0of international seabed set aside for developing countries, as well as potential resources in the very large territorial waters around many island states.<\/p>\n Backers in\u00a0Nauru,\u00a0Tonga, the\u00a0Cook Islands\u00a0and\u00a0Kiribati\u00a0argue rising demand for manganese, cobalt, copper and nickel could deliver significant economic returns and diversify economies.<\/p>\n Nauru<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Nauru\u2019s enormous deposits of guano \u2013 compressed seabird excrement long sought as fertilizer \u2013\u00a0once made\u00a0the country wealthy. But the guano is largely gone and the small nation has limited other resources.<\/p>\n Nauru sponsors\u00a0Nauru Ocean Resources, a wholly owned subsidiary of seabed mining company\u00a0The Metals Company. In\u00a02011, the company received an International Seabed Authority contract permitting exploration of polymetallic nodules in the\u00a0Clarion-Clipperton Zone, more than 8,000km from Nauru.<\/p>\n Nauru has since \u201cproudly taken a leading role\u201d in developing international legal frameworks in mining nodules in the international seabed.\u00a0In June, Nauru\u00a0signalled\u00a0Nauru Ocean Resources would apply for an\u00a0exploitation license.<\/p>\n Tonga<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Tonga\u2019s government is similarly backing deep-sea mining by partnering with The Metals Company to explore mining in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone.<\/p>\n In August 2025, Tonga signed an\u00a0updated agreement\u00a0with Tonga Offshore Mining, a subsidiary of The Metals Company. The agreement was originally signed in 2021 amid large-scale criticism over the\u00a0lack of public consultation.<\/p>\n The mining company has promised\u00a0new benefits, ranging from financial benefits, scholarships and community programs. Even so, the revised deal has\u00a0encountered opposition\u00a0from civil society, young people and legal experts. Prominent Tongans\u00a0remain unconvinced, citing environmental, legal and transparency risks.<\/p>\n Economic pressure is part of the picture. Tonga\u00a0owes\u00a0an estimated $120 million to China\u2019s Exim Bank \u2013 roughly a quarter of its annual GDP.<\/p>\n Cook Islands<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The 15 Cook Islands are widely scattered, giving the government exclusive rights to almost two million square kilometers of ocean. The government has issued\u00a0exploration licenses\u00a0inside its Exclusive Economic Zone to three companies \u2013\u00a0Cook Islands Consortium,\u00a0CIIC Seabed Resources Limited, and\u00a0Moana Minerals. The Cook Islands government has established a\u00a0domestic regulatory framework\u00a0and is building\u00a0research capacity.<\/p>\n Kiribati<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Kiribati\u2019s atolls and island are even more dispersed. The nation\u2019s exclusive economic zone covers about 3.4 million km\u00b2. The state-owned Marawa Research and Exploration company holds a 15-year\u00a0exploration contract\u00a0with the seabed authority. Kiribati has\u00a0opened talks with China\u00a0to explore potential collaboration.<\/p>\n The Pacific split<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n While revenues could potentially be sizeable for the Pacific, costs, technologies and environmental liabilities are\u00a0highly uncertain.<\/p>\n The experience of Papua New Guinea is a cautionary tale. In 2019, the PNG deep-sea mining venture Solwara-1\u00a0went into administration\u00a0following\u00a0intense community pushback. The fallout cost the government an estimated\u00a0$184 million. The PNG government\u00a0now opposes\u00a0deep-sea mining in its territorial waters.<\/p>\n While deep-sea mining now has clear backers, other nations are far more wary.<\/p>\n In 2022,\u00a0Palau\u00a0launched\u00a0an alliance\u00a0calling for a moratorium on mining in international waters. Early signatories included\u00a0Fiji,\u00a0American Samoa\u00a0and the\u00a0Federated States of Micronesia. Since then, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and the Marshall Islands have joined, as well as dozens of other countries. PNG has not yet joined.<\/p>\n Opposition from these Pacific states is based on the\u00a0precautionary principle, which favors caution when knowledge is limited and damage is possible.<\/p>\n Pacific youth are among the most prominent opponents of deep-sea mining. The regional\u00a0Pacific Blue Line\u00a0coalition uniting civil society, faith groups, women\u2019s organizations and youth networks has consistently called for a\u00a0complete ban\u00a0in the region. Young people have spoke out publicly in nations such as Tonga, where youth advocates criticized limited consultation and\u00a0rallied against the plans, as well as the\u00a0Cook Islands, where young people have demanded transparency.<\/p>\n Reputation under a cloud?<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n Pacific leaders have built a worldwide reputation for their principled climate diplomacy, from\u00a0championing the 1.5\u00b0C goal\u00a0to the major new\u00a0advisory opinion\u00a0on climate change issued by the world\u2019s top court in response to a case\u00a0instigated by\u00a0students from the University of the South Pacific.<\/p>\n If some Pacific leaders open the door fully to deep-sea mining, it risks undermining the region\u2019s united front on environmental issues and threatens its credibility.<\/p>\n The way this plays out will shape how the world hears the Pacific on climate and the oceans in the years ahead.<\/p>\n Kolaia Raisele is a\u00a0PhD Candidate in Anthropology, La Trobe University.<\/em><\/p>\n Aidan Craney is a\u00a0Research Fellow in Anthropology and Development Studies, La Trobe University.<\/em><\/p>\n This article appears courtesy of The Conversation and may be found in its original form here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n \t![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/687930\/original\/file-20250828-56-xazzob.jpg?ssl=1\")
Many species live on the seabeds, seamounts and hydrothermal vents which would be targeted for mining. Pictured: a crab crawling across a field of polymetallic nodules near Gosnold Seamount.\u00a0NOAA,\u00a0CC BY-NC-ND<\/em><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/687931\/original\/file-20250828-56-pk9lkt.jpg?ssl=1\")
Nautilus Mineral\u2019s Solwara-1 deep-sea mining project in Papua New Guinea wound up in 2019. Pictured: the company\u2019s three seabed mining vehicles. Credit Nautilus Minerals \/ handout image<\/em><\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/counter.theconversation.com\/content\/263199\/count.gif?ssl=1\")
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