Download Seabed: The New Frontier Seminar

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Seminar
Seabed: The new frontier
Exploration and exploitation of deep
seabed mineral resources in the Area:
Challenges for the International
Community
Seminario
Los fondos marinos: la nueva frontera
Exploración y explotación de los recursos
minerales de los fondos marinos profundos
de la Zona: retos para la Comunidad
Internacional
Madrid, February 24- 26, 2010
Madrid, 24 al 26 de febrero, 2010
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Prog. Fondos marinos FINAL:Programa de mano
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Seabed: The new frontier.
Exploration and exploitation of deep
seabed mineral resources in the Area:
Challenges for the International
Community
Organized by:
Fundación Ramón Areces.
International Seabed Authority.
The collaboration of the:
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
Cooperation.
Ministry of Science and Innovation
(Geological Survey of Spain).
Los fondos marinos: la nueva frontera.
Exploración y explotación de los
recursos minerales de los fondos
marinos profundos de la Zona: retos
para la Comunidad Internacional
Organizado por:
Fundación Ramón Areces.
Autoridad Internacional
de los Fondos Marinos.
Con la colaboración de:
Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y
Cooperación. Ministerio de Ciencia
e Innovación (Instituto Geológico y
Minero de España).
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INTRODUCTION
The Ramón Areces Foundation in collaboration with the
International Seabed Authority (ISBA) and the Ministries of
Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, and Science and
Innovation, welcomes in this Seminar the actors involved in
the exploration and exploitation of the mineral resources of
the deep seabed, to analyze the future challenges facing the
international community.
The deep seabed area beyond the limits of national
jurisdiction of coastal states, called "the Zone", covers no less
than 260 millions of square kilometres, a figure three times
the whole sum of all marine jurisdiction of every country in
the world, and which has hardly been exploited. However,
there is consensus in the scientific community about the
potential exploitation of these resources, witch are
considered “Common Heritage of Mankind” and regulated
by the ISBA, the International Seabed Authority (an
intergovernmental body established by the United Nations
Convention of the Law of the Sea and based in Jamaica), as
a new horizon of economic investment.
The mineral resources that may be found in seabed
includes oil, natural gas, gas hydrates, manganese nodules,
cobalt-rich crusts, massive sulphides rich in iron, zinc,
nickel, gold or copper, aggregates and placer deposits rich in
titanium, rare earths, tin, gold and diamonds. If we also
include the biomineralisation as a potential source of
pharmaceutical products, it is clear that the extraction of
these elements and components is of high interest.
The size and value of these resources are poorly
understood, as research in marine resources has been limited
and the development of marine mining slow. But the current
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oscillation of the global market underscores the importance
of expanding the framework of knowledge of the seabed, as
a key to the study of economic feasability of the exploitation
of mineral resources and the development of new
technologies and business activities.
Spain is a traditional maritime power that has a particular
responsibility in promoting scientific research in marine
geology and exploration of the deep ocean in coordination
with developing countries promoting in this way their
infrastructure through combined projects.
The Marine Geology Division of the Geological Survey
of Spain (in Spanish: Instituto Geológico y Minero de
España, IGME) has led the scientific research that supports
the expansion of the Spanish outer continental shelf in
Cantabria, Galicia and Canary Islands. This has meant an
enlargement of the Cantabric Sea of about 78,000 square
kilometres.
This seminar will review the current situation and the
experiences of other countries in this area. To Spain it offers
an excellent opportunity to sensitize the scientific
community and public opinion on the need facing our
country to have more involvement and activity in a sector
which represents a “new frontier” for the scientific
knowledge and also for the future strategic interests of the
global economy.
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INTRODUCCIÓN
La Fundación Ramón Areces, en colaboración con la Autoridad
Internacional para los Fondos Marinos (ISBA) y los Ministerios de
Asuntos Exteriores y Cooperación (MAEC) y de Ciencia e
Innovación (MICINN), reúne en este Seminario a los agentes
implicados en la exploración y explotación de los recursos minerales
de los fondos marinos profundos, con objeto de analizar los retos de
futuro a los que se enfrenta la comunidad internacional.
El área de los fondos oceánicos fuera de la jurisdicción de los
estados costeros, denominada “la Zona”, abarca nada menos que
260 millones de kilómetros cuadrados. Una cifra tres veces
superior a la suma de las jurisdicciones marinas de todos los
países del mundo, y que apenas ha sido explorada. No obstante,
existe un consenso entre la comunidad científica sobre el
potencial que ofrece la exploración de estos recursos, considerados
“patrimonio común de la Humanidad y regulados por la ISBA,
la Autoridad Internacional de los Fondos Marinos (organismo
creado por la Convención de Naciones Unidas de Derecho del
Mar, con sede en Jamaica), como un nuevo horizonte de
inversión económica.
Entre los recursos minerales que pueden encontrarse se
incluyen el petróleo, el gas natural, los hidratos de gas, los
nódulos de manganeso, las costras ricas en cobalto, los sulfuros
masivos ricos en hierro, zinc, níquel, oro o cobre, los áridos, y los
yacimientos tipo placeres ricos en titanio, tierras raras, estaño,
oro y diamantes. Si a estos recursos, se suman las
biomineralizaciones con posibilidades como fuente de productos
farmacéuticos, resulta evidente que la extracción de estos
elementos y componentes, pueda ser de gran interés.
El tamaño y el valor de dichos recursos son poco conocidos,
dado que la investigación en recursos marinos ha sido escasa y el
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desarrollo de la minería marina lento. Pero la actual oscilación
del mercado mundial pone en relieve la importancia de ampliar
el marco de conocimiento del lecho marino, como clave para el
estudio de la viabilidad económica en la explotación de recursos
minerales y en el desarrollo de nuevas tecnologías y actividades
empresariales.
España, tradicional potencia marítima, tiene una especial
responsabilidad en el fomento de la investigación científica en
geología marina y en la exploración de los fondos oceánicos
profundos en coordinación con países en vía de desarrollo,
impulsando su infraestructura a través de proyectos conjuntos.
El equipo de geología marina del IGME ha liderado las
investigaciones científicas que avalan la ampliación de la
plataforma continental española en Cantabria, Galicia y
Canarias, que ha supuesto ya una ampliación en el Mar
Cantábrico de 78.000 km2.
Este seminario analizará la situación actual y las
experiencias de otros países en la materia. Para España ofrece
una oportunidad inmejorable de concienciar a la comunidad
científica y a la opinión pública en general sobre la necesidad de
que nuestro país tenga un mayor protagonismo y actividad en un
sector que representa una “nueva frontera” para el conocimiento
científico y para los intereses estratégicos futuros de la economía
mundial.
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PROGRAM / PROGRAMA
SEDE / PLACE
Salón de Actos
Fundación Ramón Areces
Vitruvio nº 5. 28006 Madrid.
Wednesday / Miércoles, 24
09.45 h
Welcoming remarks / Bienvenida:
Presentación
H.E. Raimundo Pérez-Hernández y Torra
Director of Fundación Ramón Areces.
Spain.
Director de la Fundación Ramón Areces.
España.
Prof. Federico Mayor Zaragoza
Chairman of the Scientific Council.
Fundación Ramón Areces. Spain.
Presidente del Consejo Científico.
Fundación Ramón Areces. España.
H.E. Nii Allotey Odunton
Secretary-General. International Seabed
Authority.
Secretario General de la Autoridad
Internacional para los Fondos Marinos.
H.E. Ambassador Jesús Silva
Permanent Representative of Spain to
International Seabed Authority.
Representante Permanente de España ante
la Autoridad Internacional de los Fondos
Marinos.
H.E. Ángel Lossada
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs. Spain.
Secretario de Estado de Asuntos Exteriores.
España.
10.45 h
Break / Descanso
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SESSION 1: THE DEEP SEABED AND ITS
INTERNATIONAL FRAMEWORK AND
REGULATIONS
SESIÓN 1: EL LECHO MARINO PROFUNDO: MARCO INTERNACIONAL Y
REGULACIÓN
11.15 h
Contents and achievements of the
1982 United Nations Convention on
the Law of the Sea
Contenidos y logros de la Convención
de las Naciones Unidas sobre el
Derecho del Mar (1982)
H.E. Satya N. Nandan
Former Secretary-General International
Seabed Authority and Chairman of the
Western and Central Pacific Fisheries
Commission.
12.00 h
The International Seabed Authority:
Role, functions and organs
La Autoridad Internacional para los
Fondos Marinos: papel, funciones y
órganos
H.E. Nii Allotey Odunton
12.45 h
The International Tribunal for the Law
of the Sea
Tribunal Internacional de la Ley del Mar
Judge José Luis Jesus
President of the International Tribunal for
the Law of the Sea.
14.00 h
Break / Descanso
16.00 h
Mineral Resources of the Area: Types,
distribution and the role of marine
scientific research in their discovery
Recursos Minerales de la Zona: tipos,
distribución y el papel de la
investigación científica marina en su
descubrimiento
Dr. Charles Morgan
Planning Solutions Inc. Honolulu. Hawaii.
USA.
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16.45 h
Break / Descanso
17.15 h
The Legal framework for activities in
the Area: Prospecting and exploration
for polymetallic nodules and other
mineral resources
Marco Legal de las actividades en la
Zona: prospección y exploración de
nódulos polimetálicos y otros recursos
minerales
Mr. Michael Lodge
Legal Counsel, International Seabed
Authority.
18.00 h
Plenary discussions / Plenario
19.00 h
Cocktail receptions / Cóctel de
bienvenida
Thursday / Jueves, 25
SESSION 2: INTERNATIONAL ACTIVITIES
IN THE DEEP SEABED
SESIÓN 2: ACTIVIDADES
INTERNACIONALES EN EL LECHO
PROFUNDO
09.15 h
Prospects for the development of
polymetallic sulphides deposits in the
Area
Perspectivas para el desarrollo de
depósitos de sulfuros polimetálicos en
la Zona
Dr. Gregory Cherkashov
VNIII Okeanologia (Institute for Geology
and Mineral Resources of the Ocean). St.
Petersburg. Russia.
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10.00 h
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Prospecting and exploration for
cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts in
the Area
La prospección y exploración de
cortezas de ferromanganeso ricas en
cobalto en la Zona
Dr. James E. Hein
United States Geological Survey. USA.
10.45 h
Break / Descanso
11.15 h
Protection and preservation of the
marine environment from Activities in
the Area: Considerations in respect of
polymetallic Sulphides
Protección y preservación del medio
ambiente marino de las actividades
en la Zona: consideraciones respecto
a los sulfuros polimetálicos
Dr. S. Kim Juniper
BC Leadership Chair in Ocean Ecosystems
and Global Change School of Earth &
Ocean Sciences and Department of
Biology. University of Victoria. British
Columbia. Canada.
12.00 h
Promotion and encouragement of
marine scientific research in the AreaThe Authority’s Endowment Fund
Promoción y fomento de la
investigación científica marina en la
Zona-Dotación de la Autoridad del
Fondo
Dr. Lindsay Parson
Southampton Oceanography Centre. UK.
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12.45 h
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The activities of Brazil in relation to
deep seabed mineral resource
development
Las actividades de Brasil en relación
con el desarrollo de los recursos
minerales de los fondos marinos
profundos
Dr. Kaiser Gonçalves de Souza
Head Division of Marine Geology.
Geological Survey of Brazil.
13.30 h
The activities of Interoceanmetal Joint
Organization in relation to deep
seabed mineral resource development
Las actividades de la Organización
Interoceanmetal Joint en relación con
el desarrollo de los recursos minerales
de los fondos marinos profundos
Prof. R. Kotlinski
Director-General. IOM. Szczecin. Poland.
14.15 h
Break / Descanso
16.00 h
The activities of Germany in relation
to deep seabed mineral resource
development
Las actividades de Alemania en
relación con el desarrollo de los
recursos minerales de los fondos
marinos profundos
Dr. Peter Herzig
Director Leibniz Institut für
Meereswisseschaften. Kiel. Germany.
16.45 h
Plenary discussions / Plenario
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Friday / Viernes, 26
SESSION 3: SPAIN’S INVOLVEMENT IN
THE DEEP SEABED
SESIÓN 3: LA PARTICIPACIÓN DE ESPAÑA
EN LOS FONDOS MARINOS PROFUNDOS
09.15 h
Geoscientific infrastructure and
related offshore mineral research in
Spain. Experience from IGME
(Geological Survey of Spain)
Infraestructura geocientífica y la
investigación relacionada con
minerales marinos en España. La
experiencia del IGME (Instituto
Geológico y Minero de España)
Dr. Luis Somoza
IGME, Instituto Geológico y Minero de
España. Spain.
10.00 h
Marine scientific research in Spain.
Perspective from the Spanish National
Research Council (CSIC)
La investigación científica marina en
España. Perspectivas del Consejo
Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
(CSIC)
Dr. Juan José Dañobeitía
Consejo Superior de Investigaciones
Científicas (CSIC). Spain.
10.45 h
Break / Descanso
11.15 h
R+D activities of the Spanish
Oceanographic Institute, with special
reference to seabed studies
Actividades de I + D del Instituto
Español de Oceanografía, con especial
referencia a los estudios de los fondos
marinos
Dr. Juan Acosta and Dr. José Luis Sanz
IEO (Spanish Oceanographic Institute).
Spain.
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Roundtable: Participation of the
Spanish private sector in the deep
seabed activities
Mesa Redonda: La participación del
sector privado español en las
actividades de los fondos marinos
profundos
Representatives of Spanish companies
Representantes de empresas españolas
Moderators / Moderadores:
Dr. José Pedro Calvo
Director General del Instituto Geológico y
Minero de España (IGME). Spain.
H.E. Ambassador Rafael Conde
Director General de Relaciones
Económicas Internacionales.
Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y
Cooperación. Spain.
13.00 h
Closing Remarks and Summary of
discussions
Sesión de clausura y resumen de los
debates
Mr. Michael Lodge
Legal Counsel, International Seabed
Authority.
Dr. José Pedro Calvo
H.E. Ambassador Rafael Conde
14.00 h
Farewell / Despedida
H.E. Ambassador Jesús Silva
H.E. Raimundo Pérez-Hernández y Torra
Throughout the Symposium there will be
simultaneous interpretation
El Simposio se realizará con interpretación
simultánea
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Los fondos marinos: la nueva frontera
Seabed: The new frontier
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Seabed: The New Frontier
MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE
AREA: TYPES, DISTRIBUTION
AND THE ROLE OF MARINE
SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN
THEIR DISCOVERY
PREPARED FOR:
PREPARED BY:
DR. CHARLES L. MORGAN
CHAIRMAN, UNDERWATER MINING INSTITUTE
WWW.UNDERWATERMINING.ORG
FEBRUARY 2010
MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................................... 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................ 1 NEED FOR MARINE MINERALS ................................................................................................... 2 MARINE MINERALS ARE IMPORTANT SOURCES OF SUPPLY ........................................... 4 AGGEGRATE DEPOSITS ................................................................................................................................. 5 PLACER DEPOSITS ........................................................................................................................................ 5 PHOSPHATE DEPOSITS .................................................................................................................................. 5 FERROMANGANESE DEPOSITS ...................................................................................................................... 5 METHANE HYDRATES................................................................................................................................... 6 HYDROTHERMAL SULFIDE DEPOSITS ........................................................................................................... 6 THE TECHNOLOGY IS IN PLACE ................................................................................................. 7 EXPLORATION SYSTEMS ............................................................................................................................... 7 SEABED PICKUP SYSTEM, ORE LIFT SYSTEM, AND MINING SHIP ................................................................. 8 METALLURGICAL PROCESSING ..................................................................................................................... 8 ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND MONITORING.......................................................................................... 9 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS ARE SIMILAR TO LAND MINES ......................................... 11 THE ENVIRONMENTAL CURSE OF MARINE DEVELOPMENTS ....................................................................... 11 THE ENVIRONMENTAL BLESSING OF MARINE DEVELOPMENTS .................................................................. 11 THE MIDDLE ROAD .................................................................................................................................... 11 WE NEED GOOD POLICIES AND REGULATIONS .................................................................. 12 COMPLETION OF PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STUDIES ...................................................... 12 COMPLETION OF DOMESTIC REGULATIONS ................................................................................................ 13 ENGAGEMENT WITH THE INTERNATIONAL SEABED AUTHORITY (ISA) ...................................................... 13 SUMMARY REMARKS ................................................................................................................... 13 CITED REFERENCES ..................................................................................................................... 14 PAGE i
MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
ABSTRACT
Despite the recent worldwide economic recession, metal prices are now well above levels that existed
before the recession began. Generally, the number of mines has decreased over the past decade,
while the consumption of metals has steadily increased, due primarily to the ongoing rapid
development in Asia. The world oceans comprise two-thirds of the globe, but mineral exploration
and mining in this vast area has to date been minimal. The time is ripe for the large-scale
development of marine minerals, and they are poised to become in the near future significant sources
of supply for base and precious mineral commodities.
The technology for delivering marine minerals to world industries is in place. The recent advances in
offshore oil development, information science, and other areas make it possible now to deliver the
necessary power and control to realize efficient seabed mineral extraction with modest investment in
research and development. The highly effective remotely operated and autonomous oceanographic
survey systems currently in use and under development for marine research are now being applied
with only minor modification to the cost-effective prospecting for and quantitative delineation of
seabed mineral resources.
Though all environmental impacts are site specific, there are good reasons to believe that, in general,
environmental impacts of marine mineral development are generally the same as or less than land
developments. The critical need for the prudent and productive development of marine minerals is
the establishment of rational policies and regulations that can encourage this development with clear
and consistent environmental controls.
INTRODUCTION
Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this very important conference devoted to state of
development of mineral resources in the international seabed Area. I have been asked to summarize
the general topic of what and where marine minerals are and the status of our ability to go and get
them. The following sections address four specific topics. They are:
1. Need for Marine Minerals: Simply put, we are running out of minerals to support worldwide
industrial development, and the seabed must be considered to supply the ever widening gap
between land-base supplies and demand for base and precious metals.
2. Resources: Seabed mineral deposits are significant and could contribute a major fraction of
the global supply for base and precious metals.
3. Technology: The technology is in place for large-scale marine minerals development,
including the oceanographic research tools to find and delineate the deposits and the
engineering knowhow to extract the commodities of interest and provide them to world
markets.
4. Policies and Regulation: The deposits are there and the technology exists to discover and
recover them. The critical missing element is clear and consistent policies and regulations
that do not discriminate against marine deposits in favor of land deposits.
PAGE 1
MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
NEED FOR MARINE MINERALS
While it may be obvious to most people that metals are fundamental components of modern society
worldwide, it is far from clear how governments and private industry should deal with the current
situation of rapidly increasing demands for them and ever-shrinking supplies. As shown in Figure 1,
the number of new mines starting production peaked in the middle of the Twentieth Century and has
been decreasing dramatically since the 1960’s. Part of this trend can be explained by the fact that
newer mines are generally larger than older mines, but the implications of this graphic are
unmistakable; we are running out of minerals on land.
Figure 1
Number of New Mines per Decade
1000
New Mines per Decade
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
1800
1850
1900
Year
1950
2000
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Mineral Resources Data System
Highly respected professionals make the case for maximizing recycling and efficiency to address this
trend. For example, Prof. Friedrich-Wilhelm Wellmer and his colleagues (Wellmer and BeckerPlaten 2007) describe the concept of sustainable development of minerals as the inclusion of: (1)
efficiency of use, (2) maximization of recycling efforts, (3) minimization of energy requirements, and
(4) comprehensive inclusion of environmental impacts in any evaluation of minerals development.
Though efficient utilization and recycling can help the situation, it is clear (e.g. see Morely 2008),
that the accelerating industrial development of India, China, (see Figure 2) and other former “thirdworld” countries is placing increasing demands on the existing supplies of minerals that cannot be
met by any foreseen enhancement of substitutions, efficiencies and recycling. In addition, the appeal
to free-market forces to solve these problems becomes questionable when significant portions of
PAGE 2
MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
mineral production and consumption are under the control of planned economies (e.g. McCartan
2006).
Figure 2
Gross Domestic Product of China, 1950 - 2009
Gross Domestic Product (RMB)
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
2,
01
0
2,
00
0
1,
99
0
1,
98
0
1,
97
0
1,
96
0
1,
95
0
0
YEAR
Source: http://www.chinability.com/GDP.htm
As shown in Figure 3, the recent worldwide recession depressed metal prices significantly, but even
Figure 3
Copper Prices, 2000 - 2009
8
Cu ($US/kg)
7
6
5
4
3
2
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
2010
Year
Source: Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics
PAGE 3
MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
at its lowest point last year, copper prices were still 50% higher than levels before 2004. Currently,
prices are back up to the unprecedented levels reached before the recession.
An ironic parallel with the situation in minerals supply and demand can be seen in the current ideas
about energy policy put forth by the political parties in the U.S. The liberals complain that the oil
companies should be exploiting the offshore and onshore areas they already have under lease and that
the government should maintain the existing bans on offshore drilling and concentrate on the
development of alternative energy supplies. The conservatives want to open every potential puddle of
hydrocarbons to exploitation and let the free market develop alternate energy without government
subsidy or interference.
I am a member of the U.S. Department of the Interior Outer Continental Shelf Policy Committee that
provides independent advice to the Minerals Management Service in its regulation of offshore oil
development. I can report that, during our meeting in December 2008, there was an almost
unanimous consensus that both the liberals and conservatives have it part right and part wrong. The
energy crisis is so severe that industrial countries must support extensive government-sponsored
subsidy and incentive programs to develop alternative energies, while at the same time opening every
reasonable avenue for development of domestic fossil fuel supplies. If we do not move decisively in
both of these areas, the economic security of the large energy consuming countries will face a
constantly increasing threat.
Though not as visible to the average world citizen, a similar situation exists with respect to hard
mineral resources, and it calls for a similar solution. While fostering more efficient use, increased
substitution, and greater recycling, it is also vital that we develop all possible sources of minerals,
including marine minerals. Accordingly, governments should foster reasonable and environmentally
sensitive access to the marine mineral resources under their jurisdiction while also supporting
incentives that encourage commercial development of marine minerals, including prudent research
programs aimed at removing technical impediments to development.
MARINE MINERALS ARE IMPORTANT SOURCES OF SUPPLY
A comprehensive review of the current knowledge concerning marine minerals occurrence is well
beyond the scope of this paper. The simple fact that the oceans constitute about two-thirds of the
globe suggests the importance of marine minerals to the overall Earth inventory. Because about 60%
of the ocean surface (and 40% of the entire Earth’s surface) overlie waters at least 2,500 m deep
(Sverdrup, Johnson and Fleming 1942), it is reasonable to suggest that deep ocean minerals alone
could contribute significantly to the planet’s potentially exploitable resources. Human efforts to
recover minerals have throughout history concentrated almost exclusively on land-based resources, so
it is further not unreasonable to postulate that marine minerals might offer better prospects for future
mineral supplies than land prospects.
Comprehensive assessment of marine mineral resources have been completed for the Southwest
Pacific Region (Okamoto 2006), offshore Australia (McKay et al. 2006), the offshore United States
(OTA 1987), and probably for other regions not known to the author. Currently, we know of at least
six separate categories of marine minerals:
1. Aggegrate sand and gravel deposits;
2. Placer deposits of relatively high value minerals (gold, diamonds, tin, etc) hosted in
aggegrates;
3. Biogenically derived phosphate deposits;
4. Sediment-hosted (manganese nodules) and hard-rock hosted (ferromanganese crusts)
ferromanganese oxide deposits;
5. Sediment-hosted methane hydrate deposits; and
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
6. Hydrothermally derived sulfide deposits of copper, gold, nickel, zinc, and other metals.
The following passages briefly describe these six types of marine minerals and note their potential
relevance as sources of future minerals for modern society.
AGGEGRATE DEPOSITS
These consist of unconsolidated products of erosion, entrainment in runoff, and size classification by
currents and waves. Aggregates currently comprise important sources of industrial gravels and sands
for structural fill, concrete and other applications for coastal nations worldwide. Japan has a welldeveloped offshore aggregate industry (Arita 2007), as does Europe (Singleton 2004) and the U.S.
(Finkl et al. 2005). China (Li and Xu 2007) is actively surveying nine distinct regions associated with
coastal centers and will likely begin commercial operations in one or more of these within the next
few years.
PLACER DEPOSITS
Placer deposits, both at coastal and upland settings, have been exploited throughout history to recover
concentrations of heavy minerals (e.g. ilmenite, gold, silver, platinum, tin oxides and others). Of
great interest in recent years are the southwestern Africa operations currently recovering diamonds
using unique, state of the art systems in settings ranging from within the zone of breaking waves to
seabed areas in water depths deeper than 75 m (e.g. Goodden 2007; Bluck, Ward and Dewit 2004).
Some of these operations have proved to be very successful and presently provide a substantial
percentage of the world supply of jewelry-grade diamonds.
PHOSPHATE DEPOSITS
Marine phosphate deposits occur as muds, sands, nodules, plates, and crusts in seabed deposits lying
under coastal upwelling zones, where the resultant high biological activity caused by the upwelling of
nutrient-rich deep water leads to the deposition of the phosphate-rich deposits. Substantial quantities
have been found off the U.S. east and west coasts (OTA 1987), but no commercial recovery has
occurred to date.
FERROMANGANESE DEPOSITS
Ferromanganese oxide deposits occur on the seafloor in many low-sedimentation environments,
where they precipitate, either directly from seawater, or through various bio-geochemical
intermediaries. Deposits on hard-rock substrates form laminar crusts; deposits on sediment substrates
form discrete nodules that are susceptible to being over-turned episodically. The manganese oxides
in these deposits are effective chemical scavengers that capture many metals, removing them from
solution. This results in large marine ferromanganese deposits that are highly enriched in nickel,
copper, cobalt and other metals.
The manganese nodule deposits in the Clarion-Clipperton region of the northeastern tropical Pacific
(5˚ - 20˚ N; 110˚ - 160˚ W) have been extensively explored by commercial and research interests and
are known to contain large quantities of manganese (>7.3 X 109 metric tons), nickel (>3.4 X 108 mt),
copper (>2.9 X 108 mt) and cobalt (>5.8 X 107 mt) (ISA 2010). Smaller but still significant deposits
occur in the Indian Ocean.
Exclusive exploration rights to portions of these deposits have been granted by the International
Seabed Authority under the authority of the United Nations Law of the Sea Treaty to Contractors
from Japan, Korea, China, India, France, Russia, Germany and a consortium of Eastern European
countries and Cuba. The commercial viability of mining these deposits has yet to be demonstrated,
but the sheer size of the resource continues to motivate these Contractors to retain their exclusive
rights (Kudrass et al. 2006). In addition, a recent workshop sponsored by the International Seabed
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
Authority (ISA 2008) concluded that, based on the most recent economic models available, mining of
these deposits could generate an internal rate of return of between 15% - 38%.
The crust deposits of potential commercial interest occur around the summits of large guyots on flat
or gradually inclined surfaces, such as summit platforms, terraces, and saddles (Hein, Usui and
Dunham 2007). Deposits have been found in marine environments worldwide and are persistent
features of seamounts in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean (Usui et al. 2007a). In addition to the
metals, manganese, nickel, copper, and cobalt, some crust deposits host enriched concentrations (to ~
1 part per million) of platinum group elements (Usui et. al. 2007b) and other rare metals and rare
earth elements, such as titanium, cerium, molybdenum, and tellurium (Hein 2004). The International
Seabed Authority is currently drafting exploration regulations to administer potential commercial
exploration for these deposits.
METHANE HYDRATES
Methane hydrates form naturally in sedimentary deposits at ocean depths of 500 m or more. They are
a chemical phenomenon that occurs as methane gas escapes from reducing organic materials within
the sediments and is trapped in stable clathrate mixtures of water and gas. Seabed methane hydrates
may represent an enormous untapped energy resource. Estimates of the total volume of methane gas
locked in hydrate deposits worldwide range widely from about 105 trillion standard cubic feet (TCF)
to 108 TCF. Even at the lower end of this range, the energy contained in the methane hydrate
resource exceeds that of all known coal, oil, and natural gas reserves. If the extraction technology can
be perfected, then methane hydrates may play a major role in meeting the world's future energy needs
(HNEI 2008).
Methane hydrates off the coast of Japan have the potential to supply the nation's natural gas needs for
decades (JOGMEC 2008). In June of this year the Japan Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry,
Akira Amari, and the U.S. Secretary of Energy, Samuel Bodman, agreed to cooperate in pursuing the
commercial use of methane hydrates (Jiji Press 2008). Over the next three years, the two countries
will promote exchanges of researchers and sharing of information and technology.
HYDROTHERMAL SULFIDE DEPOSITS
From a commercial point of view, possibly the most interesting types of seabed metal deposits at this
time are the hydrothermal massive sulfide deposits. Scientists have understood for many years that
the marine deposits are newly forming examples of ore-forming processes that have culminated in
some of the most important and commercially successful land deposits of copper, zinc, lead, silver
and gold. Studies of the land deposits have guided exploration efforts for the marine deposits, and the
studies of the marine deposits have elucidated many aspects of ore formation that led to the
accumulation of the land deposits (e.g. Scott 2006; Binns, McConachy, and Yeats 2006; Hannington
et al. 2006; Melekestseva et al. 2007). The metals available from these resources, specifically copper
and gold, are currently in great demand and likely to remain so for the near future (Yamazaki 2005).
Much of the excitement about this deposit type currently stems from the Nautilus Minerals, Inc.
venture that plans to mine deposits within the Territorial Waters of Papua New Guinea. Nautilus
plans to begin commercial extraction of their Solwara 1 deposit in the third quarter of 2010.
Independent assays of this deposit document an “indicated” ore body of at least 870,000 metric tons
of ore with the following average grades: Cu: 6.8%, Au: 4.8 g/t, Ag, 23 g/t, and Zn, 0.4% (Golder
Associates 2008). As discussed below, Nautilus has assembled the technology and expertise that may
well succeed in successful commercial mining of this deposit.
The implications of the Nautilus effort, if it is successful in the near term, are potentially major for
marine mining in particular and world mining in general (Yamazaki 2007). Marine hydrothermal
deposits are widespread in the world’s oceans, and could potentially supply a major fraction of the
demands for copper, zinc, gold, silver, and other metals. Japanese scientists have identified several
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
major deposits in the Izu-Ogasawara oceanic island arc south of Tokyo (Iizasa 2002), and continuing
expeditions to these sites suggest significant mineral accumulations (Iizasa et al. 2006; Iizasa 2007;
Urabe et al. 2007). Other promising sites have been identified worldwide (e.g. Cherkashov 2005;
Cherkashov et al. 2007; Okamoto et al. 2002; Halbach et al. 2002; Peterson et al. 2007; Koski and
Tormanen 2001).
THE TECHNOLOGY IS IN PLACE
In 1975, as a recent graduate entering the Lockheed ocean mining program fresh out of academia, I
was in awe at the technology on display and in development. In retrospect, we were probably not
ready for the challenges of deep seabed mining. For example, accurate navigation in the middle of
the Pacific Ocean was severely limited by the sparsity of navigation satellites, which passed overhead
on average once every five hours. The communications link with our seabed mining test vehicle
consisted of more than twenty copper wires bundled into a large, unwieldy umbilical that carried lowresolution analog video and other signals. Our computers still used 80-column punch cards. The first
“mini-computers,” which were the size of large washing machines, were still five years from being
commercially available.
In contrast, thanks primarily to the engineering developments made by the offshore oil industry and
the computer-science advances that have revolutionized much of modern society, the technology is in
place for most of the tasks of deep seabed mining.
The objective here is not to provide a general status update regarding marine minerals technology, but
simply to demonstrate, using the best example available to date, that the technology is in place and
ready to go. The following passages briefly describe the key technological components that are
required for seabed mining and the status of their development by Nautilus Minerals. They include:
1. The exploration systems,
2. The seabed pick-up system,
3. The ore lift system,
4. The mining ship, and
5. The metallurgical processing systems.
It is important to acknowledge the support for this section provided by Mr. Michael Johnston, Vice
President of Corporate Development of Nautilus Minerals. Mike kindly provided much of the
information and materials that have made these descriptions authoritative.
One other area of great importance to the development of seabed mining is the capability to assess the
physical and biological resources in the areas impacted by mining operations and to monitor the
operations to ensure that these resources are protected. As discussed below, marine scientific
research has in recent years significantly advanced the state of the art of marine survey capabilities
and the development of understanding of how marine biological systems work.
EXPLORATION SYSTEMS
The three challenges of any mineral exploration program are: (1) knowing where to look; (2)
knowing how to spot likely mineral deposits; and (3) quantifying the value of the deposit once it is
found. As noted above, the search for marine hydrothermal sulfides has greatly benefited from the
knowledge about land-based deposits, and academic researchers, bent on confirming their hypotheses
about how these deposits form, made the original discoveries of the initial mining targets for Nautilus.
Since that time, Nautilus has used the expertise of these scientists in their effort to obtain exclusive
exploration rights to several sites in the South Pacific.
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
Since these original discoveries, Nautilus, aided by many talented consultants, has developed some
sophisticated tools for accomplishing the second challenge by efficiently using proprietary acoustic,
electromagnetic, and geochemical remote sensing techniques. Willaimson & Associates, Inc.
developed key acoustic and electromagnetic systems in this effort and, according to its president,
Michael Willaimson, it is able to “…locate, characterize and verify massive sulfide deposits with
potential as mine sites within the tenements held by Nautilus …” (Roberts 2007).
Williamson’s claims must have some basis, since Nautilus and its affiliates are presently in the
process of systematically mapping all of their exploration tenements using the system. This task is
also aided by a well-developed technique used by academic researchers to find active seabed
hydrothermal systems. Such systems produce metal-rich (particularly Mn) plumes of hot water that
disperse widely and that can be detected using towed sensor systems and confirmed by ship-board
analysis of water samples.
“Rocks in the box or no ship through the locks” is an old marine miners’ adage about the necessity of
recovering and assaying representative samples of the minerals being sought before substantial
investments can be made in developing the resource. In the case of hydrothermal sulfide deposits, the
key is to obtain representative samples in all three dimensions of the ore body. To this end, Nautilus
is heavily dependent on technology originally developed for the oil industry, i.e. remotely operated
vehicles (ROVs). These systems are capable of extended deployment on the seafloor, operation of
powered systems on the seabed, and highly developed surface-controlled communications and control
systems. A well-known developer of ROVs for the oil industry, Perry Slingsby Systems, Inc., has
developed a dedicated system that is currently being used to obtain the essential ground-truth drill
cores from the Nautilus deposits (Spencer 2007).
SEABED PICKUP SYSTEM, ORE LIFT SYSTEM, AND MINING SHIP
Nautilus has retained the British company Soil Machine Dynamics Ltd. (SMD) to design and build
the seabed system that will extract the ore from the seabed deposit and deliver it to the lift system.
SMD is a world leader in design and manufacture of complex marine excavation systems for the
Energy, Telecom and Mining industries. On April 3, 2008, Nautilus awarded a contract to Technip
USA Inc. to provide engineering procurement and construction management to design and build the
ore lift system. On June 20, 2008 Nautilus announced that it has entered into a binding agreement
with North Sea Shipping Holding AS to provide the specialized Mining Support Vessel for their
initial commercial recovery system. North Sea Shipping is a leading Norwegian ship owner and
operator in the offshore oil and gas industry.
The pace of development for these major components of the mining operation was reduced
significantly during the last year due to the obvious negative impacts of the worldwide economic
recession. However, Nautilus has in this economic downturn continued to pursue an aggressive
exploration program. To date (February 2010), Nautilus has discovered at least 18 potentially
commercial deposits of copper, gold and other metals within the Territorial Sea of Papua New Guinea
and several prospects within the Exclusive Economic Zones of other Pacific nations (Nautilus 2010).
Thus, all of these systems are firmly based on existing technology developed primarily for the
offshore oil industry. By using these contractors with proven records of accomplishment, Nautilus is
avoiding many of the risks that would otherwise have to be confronted by this pioneering venture.
METALLURGICAL PROCESSING
A very attractive feature of the hydrothermal sulfide deposits is their long history of use in land-based
mining. For most mining operations, the costs of developing and operating the metallurgical
processing systems consume well over 50% of the total capital and operational costs. Because sulfide
ores are common sources of base metals, many existing processing plants can accept such ore.
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
Nautilus has defined the necessary steps that are needed to transform the material recovered from the
seafloor into a concentrate that can be sold directly to a processing plant. Preliminary flotation test
work on 1.2 metric tons of drill-core recoveries have produced a saleable grade Cu-concentrate
(>28% Cu with low impurity concentrations and with substantial concentrations of gold and silver).
If these initial results are confirmed by subsequent testing, Nautilus will be able to generate a
marketable product with very little investment in metallurgical process development.
ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND MONITORING
The remarkable advances in marine technology that have revolutionized offshore oil exploitation
have also made it possible for major improvements in the basic marine sciences. Scientific
institutions worldwide, and particularly in Europe and the U.S., are making major progress in the
methods of marine research. One of the exciting frontiers in this effort is the general deployment of
autonomous Seagliders.™ More than 3,000 of these small (< 2 m length), sleek (see Figure 4)
devices have no external moving parts and are equipped with sensors to measure temperature,
Figure 4
Sea Gliders
Sea Glider used by IFM-Geomar. Source: IFM-Geomar
http://www.ifm-geomar.de
/index.php?id=537&L=1&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=512&tx_
ttnews[backPid]=1&cHash=27a539f8b3
Left, deploying Seaglider; Right, typical deployment. Source:
University of Washington:
http://www.apl.washington.edu/projects/seaglider/summary.html
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
pressure, ocean currents, dissolved oxygen and other variables. They are able to collect and transmit
profiles of data to depths of 1,000 m continuously for several months. When this new technology is
used in conjunction with more established and conventional survey tools (e.g. CTD profiling and
water sampling, plankton tows), it is possible to derive unprecedented three-dimensional coverage of
the water column for collection of environmental baseline data and monitoring of mining operations.
The habitats that exist at the seafloor are not well understood, but scientists are making great progress
in this area through research programs such as those affiliated with the InterRidge program.1 Key to
this work is the continuously increasing usage of tethered, Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and
un-tethered, Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) to collect data and samples from the seafloor.
These systems are being used with traditional sampling and photographic techniques to obtain
important baseline data at potential mining sites. As shown in Figure 5, the rate of discovery of new
seabed polychaete species increased dramatically during the 1950s and 1960s, but, though the
intensity of seabed research has greatly increased during the last several decades, the rate of discovery
of new species has slowed down considerably.
Figure 5
New Discoveries of Abyssal Polychaetes
Source: Glover 2007
As noted above, possibly the most exciting potential at this time for commercial seabed mining is the
Nautilus Minerals program for recovery of seabed massive sulfide deposits. Last year Nautilus
completed their environmental assessment for this mining activity2 and in January of this year has
received the necessary environmental permit from the government of Papua New Guinea, a major
step toward initiation of mining operations. It is clear that much research and monitoring must
accompany these and other seabed mining developments, but the technical capabilities available in
the modern oceanographic community make it possible to provide adequate environmental protection
for the potentially affected biological resources.
1
2
www.interridge.org
http://www.cedamar.org/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=5
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS ARE SIMILAR TO LAND MINES
A truism in the environmental impact assessment business is that all environmental assessments are
site specific. Generalities such as the title of this section have no real meaning unless they are applied
to real operations in real settings. While acknowledging the essential truth of this assertion, it is also
true that such generalizations are required for policymakers who are contemplating allocations of
public resources for research and development of natural resources.
Development of marine minerals has both the curse and blessing of taking place in the marine
environment, as discussed in the following passages.
THE ENVIRONMENTAL CURSE OF MARINE DEVELOPMENTS
Since the 1970’s and before, the marine environment has taken on a public aura of sanctity reserved
more commonly for religious beliefs. As the ultimate receptacle of virtually all waterborne human
wastes throughout history, it is reasonable that we acknowledge the potential threats that our activities
can pose to marine environments. However, what some of us in the profession irreverently refer to as
“The Flipper Syndrome” has led to an exaggerated evaluation of all marine resources with respect to
land-based resources and an exaggerated conception of the relative fragility of marine ecosystems
when compared with land ecosystems.
The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development met at Rio de Janeiro from 3 to 14
June 1992. One of the published results of this meeting, Principle 15, reads as follows:
In order to protect the environment the Precautionary Approach shall be widely applied by
States according to their capabilities. Where there are threats of serious or irreversible
damage, lack of full scientific certainty shall not be used as a reason for postponing costeffective measures to prevent environmental degradation.
Some enthusiastic environmentalists appear to this author to interpret this “Precautionary Approach”
as applied to marine activities to mean “unless we know everything, we can’t do anything,” a
fundamentally untenable position for anybody who is interested in developing marine resources.
THE ENVIRONMENTAL BLESSING OF MARINE DEVELOPMENTS
A basic advantage of marine mineral developments is that nobody lives there. The pejorative phrases
“Out of Sight, Out of Mind” or “Not in My Back Yard” come immediately to mind. Clearly, the fact
that marine mining activities take place largely beyond common scrutiny is no reason to ignore their
impacts. However, the fact that marine mining activities will not conflict with most normal human
activities eliminates a large class of environmental impacts that plague land-based mineral
developments.
Another advantage to marine mineral mining is well expressed by another discredited slogan:
“Dilution is the Solution to Pollution.” Modern environmental impact analysis requires careful
accounting of materials released into the environment and serious efforts to mitigate and eliminate
such releases. However, having the ocean available to receive unavoidable discharges can be a
distinct advantage when compared with much smaller and more confined fresh-water systems that
might otherwise be used as receiving waters.
THE MIDDLE ROAD
While it is not possible to assess the environmental impacts of marine mining in general, it is
currently true that a priori public perceptions of potential impacts pose significant impediments to
development. Thus, it is critical that proposed operations are subjected to thorough impact
assessment analysis and that mitigation measures are well designed and rigorously enforced.
However, it is also critical that policymakers take steps to provide a level playing field for marine
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
developments that encourages objective comparisons with alternative land-based proposals for
supplying needed mineral resources.
For as long as the governments of developed countries fail to act in these areas, prospective marine
mining operations will of necessity confine their operations to the Territorial Waters of sovereign
nations where responsive governments can provide clear guidelines for development.
WE NEED GOOD POLICIES AND REGULATIONS
As discussed in the sections above, the economic incentives and technological capability are in place
to permit significant development of deep seabed mining, both within the Area and national
jurisdictions worldwide. A key missing element that is beginning to affect seabed mining in national
jurisdictions is the lack of clear and fair regulatory regimes to guide this development. I do not
presume to have developed a comprehensive description of how such regimes can be quickly
established. However, based on inferences from the above sections, I can suggest the following
objectives that the should be addressed:
1. Marine developments in general should be regarded within the same context as land-based
developments. Public education efforts should level the playing field for marine and landbased developers. International regulatory controls over marine mineral developments should
be consistent with national controls.
2. Marine mineral development proposals should comply with identical or closely analogous
regulatory controls of land-based developments.
3. Research and development resources should be targeted specifically to encourage marine
minerals development.
I offer the following three general work priorities that could address these objectives:
COMPLETION OF PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STUDIES
In the United States, Programmatic Environmental Impact Statements (PEISs) are drafted by
government agencies when there is the potential for new industrial development that is in the general
public interest. The U.S. Minerals Management Service recently completed a PEIS for offshore
alternative energy developments. The U.S. Bureau of Land Management has finalized a PEIS
specifically for wind energy developments on public lands. The State of Washington in 2007
completed a PEIS that addresses the major aspects of energy, aquaculture, and other industries that
depend upon the Columbia River.
It would be very useful for coastal government agencies to draft programmatic environmental impact
studies for specific marine mineral categories as soon as possible. Such studies are an excellent
means to address the concerns identified above. They could:
1. Compare the relative environmental costs (land use, energy, water and air pollution, etc.)
associated with the development of land-based minerals with those that would extract
equivalent amounts of marine minerals;
2. Summarize the available mineral resource assessments within the government’s jurisdictional
authority and recommend specific survey and analysis work to enhance the public data base;
3. Support directed research to:
a. Understand the basic formative processes that lead to the accumulation
of these resources,
b. Perfect methods to detect and assess the occurrence of the deposits, and
c. Identify the engineering solutions to their extraction and processing.
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
4. Examine existing regulatory controls and recommend changes, as appropriate for each
resource.
COMPLETION OF DOMESTIC REGULATIONS
One of the greatest risks faced by marine minerals ventures is the uncertainty of tenure. For example,
Nautilus Minerals has succeeded in acquiring government guarantees from Papua New Guinea and
Tonga, but has not achieved any such agreements with U.S., Japanese, or other governments of
developed countries. This is not because Nautilus is trying to avoid environmental, royalty, or any
other legitimate government controls. It is because the governments of these “developed countries”
have not yet concluded that it is in their interest (national or bureaucratic) to offer any reasonable
remedy for Nautilus Minerals or any other legitimate marine minerals miner.
ENGAGEMENT WITH THE INTERNATIONAL SEABED AUTHORITY (ISA)
By failing to ratify the United Nations Law of the Sea Treaty, the United States is delaying its
confrontation with reality and also putting it own citizens at a disadvantage in the development of
deep seabed minerals. All nations must learn to take the ISA seriously.
As of December 1, 2009, 160 sovereign nations are members of the ISA, which is working on
regulations to develop sulfide and ferromanganese crust deposits. In 2007, Germany made the latest
claim to deep seabed deposits of manganese nodule resources in the Clarion-Clipperton region. The
regulations that the ISA is drafting will provide precedents for national legislation worldwide. The
high-level engagement of U.S. diplomatic representatives, backed by support of staff research to
become knowledgeable in this discipline, would be a refreshing change.
SUMMARY REMARKS
Thank you again for the opportunity to participate in this very interesting and important conference.
In summary:
1. Need for Marine Minerals: Simply put, we are running out of minerals to support worldwide
industrial development, and the seabed must be considered to supply the ever widening gap
between land-base supplies and demand for base and precious metals.
2. Resources: Seabed mineral deposits are significant and could contribute a major fraction of
the global supply for base and precious metals.
3. Technology: The technology is in place for large-scale marine minerals development,
including the oceanographic research tools to find and delineate the deposits and the
engineering knowhow to extract the commodities of interest and provide them to world
markets.
4. Policies and Regulation: The deposits are there and the technology exists to discover and
recover them. The critical missing element is clear and consistent policies and regulations
that do not discriminate against marine deposits in favor of land deposits.
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MINERAL RESOURCES OF THE AREA
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PAGE 17
Cobalt-rich Ferromanganese Crusts: A Global Perspective
James R. Hein
U.S. Geological Survey, 345 Middlefield Rd., Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA,
[email protected]
INTRODUCTION
The resource potential of the vast mineral deposits that occur within the global
ocean is unknown, despite many field studies that have taken place during the past 30
years. Since about 1975, information on marine mineral deposits has been obtained by
numerous research cruises by the U.S., Germany, France, Russia, Japan, China, South
Korea, and others. However, the global effort remains inadequate to allow for the
quantitative evaluation of mineral resources contained within the Exclusive Economic
Zone (EEZ) of nations or within regions of the oceans beyond national jurisdictions (The
Area).
This paper deals with basic knowledge of ferromanganese oxide crust deposits
(hereafter called Fe-Mn crusts) that occur throughout the global ocean, as well as with
mining, technological, and economic issues concerning this deposit type. Fe-Mn crusts
have also been called cobalt-rich crusts, manganese crusts, and cobalt crusts.
There are three practical interests in Fe-Mn crusts, the first being their economic
potential for cobalt, manganese, nickel, rare-earth elements, tellurium, titanium, and
other metals. The second interest is the use of Fe-Mn crusts as recorders of the past
70 million years (Ma) of oceanic and climatic history. The third interest is in the fact that
adsorption of metals onto Fe-Mn crusts may control their concentrations in seawater;
such is the case for cerium and tellurium. Of these three interests, this paper will
address only the economic interest.
OCCURRENCE OF Fe-Mn CRUSTS
Fe-Mn crusts are found throughout the ocean basins on rock substrates. They
form at the seabed on the flanks and summits of seamounts (see appendix), ridges,
1
plateaus, and abyssal hills where the seabed has not accumulated sediment (Figures 1
and 2). Fe-Mn crusts of economic interest form by precipitation from cold ambient
seawater, which is a process called hydrogenetic precipitation. Fe-Mn crusts occur at
water depths of about 400-7,000 m, but most commonly occur at depths from about
1,000-3,000 m. The crusts most enriched in cobalt occur at water depths from 8002,200 m, which mostly encompasses the oxygen minimum zone (OMZ; see appendix).
In the Pacific, the thickest crusts occur at water depths of 1,500-2,500 m, which
corresponds to the depths of the outer summit area and upper flanks of most
Cretaceous guyots (see appendix) in the Pacific Ocean. The water depths of thick
crusts with high cobalt contents vary regionally and are generally shallower in the South
Pacific where the OMZ is less well developed (Hein, 2006, 2008). Crusts become
thinner with increasing water depth because of mass movements and reworking of the
deposits on the seamount flanks. Most Fe-Mn crusts located on the middle and lower
seamount flanks consist of encrusted talus rather than encrusted rock outcrop, the latter
typically having thicker crusts. Many seamounts and ridges are capped by pelagic
sediments and therefore do not support the growth of Fe-Mn crusts on the summit. FeMn crusts are usually thin on the submarine flanks of islands and atolls because of the
large amounts of debris that are shed down the flanks by gravity processes. Regional
mean crust thicknesses mostly fall between 5 and 40 mm. Only rarely are very thick
crusts (greater than 100 mm) found, most being from the central Pacific, for which initial
growth may approach within 10-30 Ma the age of the substrate rock. Thick crusts are
rarely found in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, with the thickest (up to 125 mm) being
recovered from the New England seamount chain (NW Atlantic), and a 72 mm-thick
crust being recovered from a seamount in the Central Indian Basin (Hein, 2006, 2008).
The distribution of crusts on individual seamounts and ridges is poorly known.
Seamounts generally have either a rugged summit with moderately thick to no sediment
cover (0-150 m) or a flat summit (guyot) with thick to no sediment cover (0-500 m). The
outer summit margin and the flanks may be terraced with shallowly dipping terraces
headed by steep slopes meters to tens of meters high. Talus piles commonly
accumulate at the base of the steep slopes and at the foot of the seamounts; thin
sediment layers may blanket the terraces alternately covering and exhuming Fe-Mn
crusts. The thickest crusts occur on summit outer-rim terraces and on broad saddles on
the summits. Estimates of sediment cover on various seamounts range from 0% to
100%, and likely averages between about 40 and 60%.
CHARACTERISTICS OF Fe-Mn CRUSTS
Physical Properties
Fe-Mn crusts form pavements up to 250 mm thick on rock outcrops, or coat talus
debris. Fe-Mn crusts have very high porosity (mean 60%), extremely high specific
surface area (mean 325 square meters per cubic centimeter of crust (m2/cc), and
accrete to the seabed at the incredibly slow rates of 1-7 mm/Ma (Hein et al., 1997,
2000). An important consideration in the exploration and exploitation of potential Fe-Mn
crust resources is the contrast in physical properties between crusts and substrate
2
rocks. Those comparisons are complicated by the fact that crusts grow on a wide
variety of substrate rocks with a wide variety of physical properties, most of which
overlap with those of the Fe-Mn crusts. The P-wave velocity of Fe-Mn crusts may be
less or more than that of the sedimentary substrate rocks, but is generally less than that
of basalt substrate. This variable contrast will make it difficult to develop sonic
instruments for measuring crust thicknesses in situ. The most distinctive property of FeMn crusts is their gamma radiation level, which averages 475 net counts per minute in
contrast to sedimentary rock and basalt substrates. Gamma radiation may be a useful
tool for crust exploration under thin-sediment cover and for measuring crust thicknesses
in situ.
Mineralogy and Chemical Composition
The dominant crystalline phase in Fe-Mn crusts is δ-MnO2 (also called vernadite),
which commonly makes up more than 90 percent of the X-ray crystalline phases, the
remainder being detrital minerals such as quartz and feldspar, and authigenic carbonate
fluorapatite (CFA). The older parts of thick crusts may contain up to 30 percent CFA.
Another major phase in crusts is X-ray amorphous iron oxyhydroxide (δ-FeO(OH),
feroxyhyte), which is commonly intergrown with the δ-MnO2. In about 6% of 640
samples analyzed, the feroxyhyte crystallized as goethite (α-FeO(OH)) in the older parts
of thick crusts.
Fe-Mn crusts are composed mainly of iron and manganese oxides, but it is their
high cobalt contents (0.3 to 1.8 percent) that have elicited economic interest. However,
crusts commonly have high concentrations of other metals (Figure 3) that are now
becoming of economic interest and may surpass the value of cobalt in the future. This
renewed interest is based on the high concentrations in Fe-Mn crusts of many metals
that are essential for emerging high-technology and next-generation applications (Hein
et al., 2010). These metals include titanium, cerium (and the other rare-earth elements),
nickel, zirconium, platinum, molybdenum, copper, and especially tellurium, which has
attracted much attention from the solar-cell industry (Hein et al., 2010). It is striking that
tellurium is enriched by a factor of 10,000 over its mean concentration in continental
rocks but that cobalt, bismuth, platinum, thallium, and tungsten are enriched only by
factors of about 100. However, to put this into perspective, mean cobalt concentrations
in Fe-Mn crusts for example are three- to ten-fold higher than those in mined landbased deposits. Tellurium has remarkable enrichments compared to both seawater and
continental rocks and has a mean global concentration of about 50 parts per million
(ppm; see appendix) in Fe-Mn crusts and a maximum value of 206 ppm (Hein et al.,
2003). The central Pacific mean concentrations and global maximum concentrations for
metals of interest to emerging and high-technology industries are shown in Figure 4.
The central Pacific is a large geographic region (Figure 5) that shows the greatest
enrichment of the high-technology metals (Hein et al., 2009), with the notable exception
of thorium (see white horizontal lines in the vertical bars in Figure 4); thorium is higher
in Atlantic and Indian Ocean crusts.
Fe-Mn crusts contain sub-equal amounts of iron and manganese (Figure 3).
Iron/manganese ratios are less than 1 for open-ocean Pacific crusts and greater than 1
3
for Pacific-margin crusts, and for most Atlantic and Indian Ocean crusts. Cobalt, nickel,
titanium, and platinum contents are generally highest in crusts from the central and
northwest Pacific and lowest in crusts from along the spreading centers in the southeast
Pacific, the continental margins, and along the volcanic arcs of the west Pacific (Hein,
2006, 2008.) Cobalt contents are low and nickel contents are the lowest for crusts from
the Atlantic and Indian Oceans compared to crusts from other regions. Copper contents
generally follow the trend for cobalt, nickel, and platinum, except for the Indian Ocean,
where a high mean value of 1254 ppm is found. The reason for those high values is the
much greater mean water depth for crusts collected from the Indian Ocean. Shatsky
Rise Fe-Mn crusts, mid-latitudes of the north Pacific, have a surprisingly high mean
copper content, as well as the highest copper value measured in a single bulk crust, 0.4
percent (4,000 ppm). Cerium is generally lower in south Pacific crusts than it is in north
Pacific crusts and has moderate contents in Atlantic and Indian Ocean crusts. Tellurium
can be high in Fe-Mn crusts from throughout the global open ocean, but is lower in
ocean-margin Fe-Mn crusts and those near hydrothermal input to the oceans. Thorium
is higher in Atlantic and Indian Ocean Fe-Mn crusts.
Mechanisms of Formation
Even though Fe-Mn crusts form by hydrogenetic precipitation, the exact
mechanisms of metal enrichments at the crust surface are poorly understood. The
ultimate sources of metals to the oceans are river and eolian (wind) input, hydrothermal
input, weathering of ocean-floor basalts, release of metals from sediments, and
extraterrestrial input (micrometeorites). Elements in seawater may occur in their
elemental form or as inorganic and organic complexes. Those complexes may in turn
form colloids that interact with each other and with other dissolved metals (e.g.,
Koschinksy and Halbach, 1995; Koschinsky and Hein, 2003). Geochemical models
show that most hydrogenetic elements in crusts occur as inorganic complexes in
seawater (Koschinsky and Hein 2003). Hydrated cations (cobalt, nickel, zinc, lead,
cadmium, thallium, etc.) are attracted to the negatively charged surface of manganese
oxides, whereas anions and elements that form large complexes with low charge
density (vanadium, arsenic, phosphorus, zirconium, hafnium, etc.) are attracted to the
slightly positive charge of the iron oxyhydroxide surfaces.
Mixed iron and manganese colloids with adsorbed metals precipitate onto hardrock surfaces as poorly crystalline or amorphous oxides, possibly through bacterially
mediated catalytic processes. Continued crust accretion after precipitation of that first
molecular layer is autocatalytic. Additional metals are incorporated into the deposits
either by co-precipitation, or by diffusion of the adsorbed ions into the manganese and
iron oxide crystal lattices. Cobalt is strongly enriched in hydrogenetic crusts because it
is oxidized from soluble cobalt (II) to the less soluble cobalt (III) on the crust surface.
Tellurium, thallium, cerium, and platinum are also highly enriched in hydrogenetic
deposits, probably by a similar oxidation mechanism (Koschinsky and Halbach, 1995;
Hein et al., 2003).
The dominant controls on the concentration of elements in hydrogenetic crusts
are the concentration of each element in seawater; element-particle reactivity; element
residence times in seawater; the absolute and relative amounts of iron and manganese
4
in the crusts, which in turn are related to their abundance and ratio in colloids in
seawater; the colloid surface charge and types of complexing agents, which will
determine the amount of scavenging within the water column; the degree of oxidation of
MnO2 (oxygen/manganese ratio)--the greater the degree of oxidation the greater the
adsorption capacity--which in turn depends on the oxygen content and pH of seawater;
the amount of surface area available for accretion; the amount of dilution by detrital
minerals and diagenetic phases; and growth rates.
ECONOMIC, TECHNOLOGICAL, AND INTERNATIONAL ISSUES
A critical concern of coastal States today is the limits of the outer continental
margin and the possibility of extending (ECS) their 200 nautical mile (360 km) EEZ on
the basis of geologic criteria codified in the United Nations Convention Law of the sea
(UNCLOS). Applications made by coastal States are reviewed by the Commission of
the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) and recommendations are made as to
adherence to UNCLOS criteria. In addition, UNCLOS established the regulatory
authority for deep-sea mining in areas beyond national jurisdictions (The Area) through
the formation of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), headquartered in Kingston
Jamaica. The General Assembly of the ISA now has 155 member States. Regulations
have been established for exploration for manganese nodules and are nearly complete
for polymetallic sulfides. Fe-Mn crust draft regulations may be discussed starting at the
2010 session of the Council. Additions of seabed areas to EEZs through ECS approvals
decrease the amount of seabed that comprises The Area regulated by the ISA.
New concerns about global supplies of energy and critical and strategic minerals
demand that potential contributions from the global ocean be understood and
considered in calculations of global mineral assessments. Emerging markets for metals
in Asia and rapidly developing technologies for solar-cell technologies, fuel-cell and
hybrid cars, and many other high-technology applications will significantly increase
global demands for cobalt, tellurium, titanium, rare-earth elements, tungsten, zirconium,
platinum, nickel, and others. These are among the most common metals found in deepsea Fe-Mn crusts, which will be needed to meet the growing demands.
The global market for cobalt would likely support not more than one or two Fe-Mn
crust mine sites. A mine site would require about 3.7% of the surface area above 2,500
m water depth of one to three guyots (0.01% of the total area of those edifices)
depending on their size and other factors as discussed in detail by Hein et al. (2009);
Hein et al. also provide criteria for exploration for thick Fe-Mn crust deposits. That minesite area would be sufficient to sustain a 20-year mine site if cobalt was the primarily
metal of interest. This 20-year mining operation for Fe-Mn crusts would supply about 15
percent of the annual global need for cobalt. Competing mining operations would
probably not be economic for cobalt, although tellurium, nickel, platinum and other rare
metals might support additional operations if warranted by the global markets for those
metals. Technology also plays an important role in the exploitation of deep-sea
minerals. For example, the advantage of the exploitation of manganese nodules versus
Fe-Mn crusts is the relative ease of recovery of nodules, whereas the advantage of
mining crusts is their occurrence at shallower water depths and their higher contents of
5
rare metals. These and other changing economic, political, security, technological, and
land-use issues can significantly affect the time frame of mining the deep sea.
Technology
There are two main technological challenges to Fe-Mn crust mining. The largest
impediment to exploration for Fe-Mn crusts is the real-time measurement of crust
thicknesses with a deep-towed instrument. As mentioned in the Physical Properties
section above, the most distinctive property of Fe-Mn crusts is their gamma radiation
level. Consequently, development of a Gamma radiation instrument may be a useful
tool for measuring crust thicknesses in situ. The largest physical impediment to ore
recovery is separation of Fe-Mn crusts from substrate rock that occurs on an uneven
and rough seabed. This requires appropriate cutter heads on the mining machine and
creative engineering to solve this problem.
Fe-Mn crust mining is technologically much more difficult than mining
manganese nodule because nodules sit on a soft-sediment substrate. In contrast, FeMn crusts are weakly to strongly attached to substrate rock. For successful crust
mining, it is essential to recover Fe-Mn crusts without collecting much substrate rock,
which would significantly dilute the ore grade. Five possible Fe-Mn crust-mining
operations include fragmentation, crushing, lifting, pick-up, and separation (Hein et al.,
2000). The proposed method of Fe-Mn crust recovery consists of a bottom-crawling
vehicle (Figure 6) attached to a surface mining vessel by means of a hydraulic pipe lift
system and an electrical umbilical (DOI-MMS, 1990). The mining machine provides its
own propulsion and travels at a speed of about 20 cm/s. The miner has articulated
cutters that would allow Fe-Mn crusts to be fragmented while minimizing the amount of
substrate rock collected. About 95% of the fragmented material would be picked up and
processed through a gravity separator prior to lifting. The net recovery of crusts
depends on fragmentation efficiency, pickup efficiency, and separation losses.
Fragmentation efficiencies depend on small-scale topography and depth of the cut.
Pickup efficiencies also depend on seafloor roughness, but to a lesser extent than
fragmentation efficiency, and on the size of fragmented particles and type of pickup
device. Some new and innovative systems that have been suggested for Fe-Mn crust
mining include water-jet stripping of crusts, sonic fragmentation, and in situ leaching
techniques.
Economic Considerations
The importance of metals contained in Fe-Mn crusts to the world economy is
reflected in their patterns of consumption. The primary uses of manganese, cobalt, and
nickel are in the manufacture of steel to which they provide unique characteristics.
Cobalt and the rare metals needed for emerging technologies have many potential
applications (Table 1) should adequate supplies become available. Supplies of these
metals and other rare metals found in crusts are essential for maintaining the efficiency
of modern industrial societies and in improving the standard of living in the 21st century.
6
Cobalt and many of the rare metals needed for emerging technologies do not
have primary sources in land-based mining, but rather are byproducts of copper and
other base-metal mining. This limits their availability to that of the demand for the
primary commodity. This uncertainty in supply has caused industry to look for
alternatives to cobalt, tellurium, and other rare metals resulting in only a modest growth
in their markets over the past decade, and consequently relatively low prices. If
substantial alternative sources for cobalt, tellurium, and other rare metal supplies are
developed, there should be a greater incentive for product development and expanded
markets. This is especially evident for tellurium, where it could be a key player in
cadmium-tellurium photovoltacis for solar cells (Hein et al., 2010). Tellurium is
considered the best material for production of multi-terawatt solar-cell electricity using
thin-film photovoltaic technology (e.g. Fthenakis, 2009), but the present global supply is
inadequate to fulfill that need.
Recent global prices for metals contained in Fe-Mn crusts indicate that titanium
has the highest value after cobalt, the rare-earth elements (represented by cerium in
Table 2) have a greater value than nickel, zirconium is equivalent to nickel, and
tellurium has nearly twice the value of copper. However, the solar-cell industry would be
willing to pay 5 to 6 times more for the tellurium should enough be produced for a viable
cadmium-tellurium photovoltaics industry. Manganese is not shown in Table 2 as it
could be recovered in several different forms depending on demand. Cerium and the
other rare-earth elements may become increasingly important if China restricts export of
those metals as some predict (Stone, 2009). Table 2 assumes that economic and
quantitative extractive metallurgy can be developed for each of those metals. New
extractive metallurgical technology developed for nickel laterite deposits
(http://www.directnickel.com) can be adapted to extract many of the metals of interest from
for Fe-Mn crusts with better than 90% recovery levels.
There is a growing recognition that Fe-Mn crusts are an important potential
resource. Accordingly, it is necessary to fill the information gaps concerning various
aspects of crust mining through research, exploration, and technology development.
Much of that research, especially technology development, is being done now in China,
Korea, Japan, Russia, and India. Other countries have smaller programs or have
finished scientific programs designed to study Fe-Mn crusts (Table 3).
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economic considerations. Proceedings of the International Seabed Authority’s
Workshop held in Kingston, Jamaica, 31 July-4 August 2006, p. 59-90.
Hein, J.R., Conrad, T.A., and Staudigel, H., 2010, Seamount mineral deposits, a source
of rare-metals for high technology industries. Oceanography, v. 23:144-149.
Hein, J.R., Conrad, T.A., and Dunham, R.E., 2009, Seamount characteristics and minesite model applied to exploration- and mining-lease-block selection for cobalt-rich
ferromanganese crusts. Marine Georesources and Geotechnology, v. 27:160-176.
Hein, J.R., Koschinsky, A., Halbach, P., Manheim, F.T., Bau, M., Kang, J.-K., and
Lubick, N., 1997, In: Nicholson, K., et al. (eds.), Geol. Soc. London Special Pub.
119, London, p. 123-138.
Hein, J.R., Koschinsky, A., Bau, M., Manheim, F.T., Kang, J.-K., and Roberts, L. (2000)
In: Cronan, D.S. (ed.), Handbook of Marine Mineral Deposits. CRC Press, Boca
Raton, Florida, 239-279.
Hein, J.R., Koschinsky, A., and Halliday, A.N., 2003, Global occurrence of tellurium-rich
ferromanganese oxyhydroxide crusts and a model for the enrichment of tellurium.
Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, v. 67:1117-1127.
Koschinsky, A. and Halbach, P., 1995, Sequential leaching of marine ferromanganese
precipitates: Genetic implications. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, v. 59:51135132.
Koschinsky, A. and Hein, J.R., 2003, Uptake of elements from seawater by
ferromanganese crusts: solid phase association and seawater speciation. Marine
Geology, v. 198:331-351.
Stone, R., 2009, As China’s rare earth R&D becomes ever more rarefied, others
tremble. Science, v. 325:1336-1337.
8
APPENDIX
Conversions
Metal concentrations in weight percent to parts per million (ppm; same as grams per
tonne) multiply by 10,000: for example, 1 percent equals 10,000 parts per million; 0.1
percent equals 1000 parts per million.
Definitions
Cretaceous is the geological period that extends from 65 Ma to 145 Ma ago.
Guyot is a flat-topped seamount (see seamounts).
Oxygen minimum zone (OMZ) is the water depth interval through the water column
where the oxygen content is lowest. The low oxygen is caused by the oxidation of
organic matter that is created in surface waters by primary biological productivity
(mainly plankton); the organic matter produced descends through the water column
once the plankton die. The water depth interval of the OMZ depends on the amount of
biological productivity in the surface waters. In the central Pacific, the OMZ generally
occurs from about 400 to 2,200 meters. This is important because manganese is more
soluble in low oxygen seawater and therefore the OMZ acts as a reservoir for
manganese colloids and associated sorbed metals.
Seamounts are submarine volcanoes that may be active currently or may have been
extinct for up to 180 million years. They do not currently extend above the ocean
surface as islands, but some were once islands. Once the volcanoes became dormant,
they subsided as much as 2 km. It has been estimated that about 100,000 seamounts
are present in the Pacific Ocean, and lesser numbers in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans,
which are dominated by spreading ridges. Flat-topped seamounts, known as guyots,
were once islands. Their tops were eroded flat by waves as the edifices sank following
cessation of volcanic construction. Conical seamounts were never islands. Most
seamounts in the central Pacific are 65 to120 million years old (Cretaceous) and have
not been volcanically active for tens of millions of years.
9
FIGURES
Figure 1. Size of selected large central Pacific seamounts and ridges compared to size
of Iberian Peninsula. These Cretaceous volcanic edifices have Fe-Mn crust pavements
covering surfaces not covered by sediment.
10
Figure 2. A. Typical seabed Fe-Mn crust pavement from Horizon Guyot, central Pacific;
field of view is about 4 m by 3 m. B. Cross-section of Fe-Mn crust from a seamount in
the Marshall Islands, central Pacific. The crust started growing on the rock substrate
about 72 Ma ago; note the distinct growth layers of this 180 mm thick crust.
11
Figure 3. Mean chemical composition of 627 bulk Fe-Mn crust samples from the central
Pacific compared with the mean composition of 103 crusts from the area around
Johnston Island. Each area of the global ocean has a somewhat different mean
composition of Fe-Mn crusts.
12
Figure 4. Global trace-metal maxima and central Pacific mean concentrations (white
lines) in Fe-Mn crusts based on data presented by Hein et al. (2000, 2008). The mean
value for cobalt is 6,500 ppm, for cerium is 1,717 ppm (which fall in the break in the
scale), and for platinum is 0.5 ppm (modified from Hein et al., 2010).
13
Figure 5. Location of seamounts, guyots, ridges, and plateaus used for surface area
measurements and mine-site model evaluation. Brown areas were measured and are
marked by red circles indicating relative sizes; dashed line encloses the largest region
in the global ocean with permissive conditions for development of thick Fe-Mn crusts
(from Hein et al., 2009).
14
Figure 6. Schematic representation of a deep-sea mining vehicle for Fe-Mn crusts;
designed by J.E. Halkyard, OTC Corporation (from DOI-MMS, 1990).
15
TABLES
Table 1. Use of rare metals in Fe-Mn crusts in emerging and next-generation
technologies; ratio of U.S. imports to exports (modified from Hein et al., 2010).
Import/ Main Uses
Emerging & Next Generation Technologies
Export
Te
9
Steel, Cu, & Pb alloys, pigment Photovoltaic solar cells; computer chips;
thermal cooling devices
Co
4
Steel superalloys (e.g. jet
engines), batteries, chemical
application
Hybrid & electric car batteries, storage of solar
energy, magnetic recording media, high-T
super-alloys, supermagnets, cell phones
Bi
6
Metallurical additives, fusible
alloys, pharmaceuticals &
chemicals
Liquid Pb-Bi coolant for nuclear reactors; Bimetal polymer bullets, high-T superconduct,
computer chips
W
3
Wear-resistent materials,
Negative thermal expansion devices, high-T
superalloys, electrical, chemicals superalloys, X-ray photo imaging
Nb
18
Steel & superalloys
High-T superalloys, next generation capacitors,
superconducting resonators
Pt
7
Catalytic converters, liquidcrystal & flat-panel displays,
jewelry, electronics
Hydrogen fuel cells, chemical sensors, cancer
drugs, electronics
Te is tellurium; Co is cobalt; Bi is bismuth; W is tungsten; Nb is niobium; Pt is platinum
16
Table 2. Value of metals in 1 metric ton of Fe-Mn crust
from central Pacific; red indicates metals commonly used
for economic evaluations.
Mean Price
of Metal
(2008
$/kg)
Cobalt
$92.59
Cerium
$125.00
Titanium
$8.70
Nickel
$20.74
Molybdenum
$74.96
Platinum
$64,795.28
Tellurium
$350.00
Zirconium
$25.30
Copper
$8.48
Tungsten
$25.40
Total
--
Mean
Content
in Crusts
(g/ton)
6899
1605
12035
4125
445
0.5
60
618
896
90.5
--
Value per
Metric Ton
of Ore ($)
$638.81
$200.63
$104.70
$85.55
$33.36
$32.40
$21.00
$15.64
$7.59
$2.30
$1,141.98
Table 3. Nations that have conducted scientific research for Fe-Mn crusts, the regions
of their studies, and the availability of data.
Nation
Region
Data
Australia
Brazil
China
France
Germany
India
Japan
Korea
New Zealand
Portugal
Russia
U.S.
SW Pacific
Equatorial Atlantic
N Pacific
French Polynesia
Global
Mid-Indian Ocean
N Pacific/SOPAC
N Pacific/SOPAC
SW Pacific
NE Atlantic
N Pacific
Global
Data/science published
Data/science published
Proprietary
Data/science published 1980s
Proprietary/science published
Proprietary/science published
Proprietary/SOPAC reports
Proprietary/science published
Data/science published
Data/science published
Proprietary/science published
Data/science published
17
Hydrothermal vent ecosystems associated with polymetallic sulphides
‐ conservation and genetic resource issues
S. Kim Juniper
University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Abstract
In addition to forming mineral deposits of economic interest, hydrothermal venting at
mid-ocean ridges supports unique biological communities that are adapted to extreme
environmental conditions and derive their energy from chemical substances in
hydrothermal fluids. Most vent species occur nowhere else on Earth. Mining of
hydrothermally active polymetallic sulphide deposits will result in the destruction of
habitat used by vent organisms. In order to mitigate the impact of mining on the survival
of individual hydrothermal vent species, research must be carried out prior to the
planning of mining operations. The establishment of protected vent areas is one
management tool that could be used to prevent eradication of species. Vent organisms
also constitute a unique genetic resource. Academic researchers and the biotechnology
industry have been particularly interested in the extremophile organisms that inhabit
hydrothermal vents. Features such as tolerance to high temperatures and toxic chemicals,
rapid growth and unusual symbioses with bacteria are common at vents. Already,
enzymes from high temperature microorganisms being commercially marketed and other
products of vent research are undergoing testing or clinical trials.
Introduction
The discovery of deep-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystems in the late 1970’s was one of
the most important biological discoveries of the latter half of the 20th century.
Everywhere scientists have found hydrothermal vent activity in the deep ocean, they have
found communities of specialized vent organisms. In order to understand the scientific
value of vent ecosystems and their potential value to society, we first need to consider
how ecosystems normally operate in the deep ocean.
In the total darkness of the deep ocean most food chains are nourished by organic debris
that sediments down from surface waters where phytoplankton carry out photosynthesis.
Only a very small fraction (1% or less) of this surface productivity reaches the deep
ocean floor. As a result, nutritional resources and animal life are very scarce. An
exception to this rule is found at deep-sea hydrothermal vents at mid-ocean ridge and
back-arc spreading centres, and at underwater volcanoes associated with island arc
volcanism. In these settings, geological forces provide ecosystems with nonphotosynthetic energy sources. Hydrothermal vents discharging from the seafloor provide
chemical energy for specialized microbes and vent animals that concentrate around vent
openings. Vent faunal biomass can be 500 to 1000 times that of the surrounding deep sea
and rival values in the most productive marine ecosystems such as shellfish cultures.
Biological productivity at hydrothermal vents is sustained not by photosynthetic products
arriving from the sunlit surface ocean, but rather by the chemosynthesis of organic matter
by vent microorganisms, using energy from chemical oxidations to produce organic
matter from CO2 and mineral nutrients. Hydrogen sulphide and other reducing
substances present in hydrothermal fluids provide the fuel for organic matter synthesis by
free-living microbes and microbes living in symbioses with vent organism. This
chemosynthetically produced organic matter then provides food, often very abundant, for
the animal communities living around vents (see Tunnicliffe 1992 and Van Dover 2000
for detailed discussion of the biology and ecology of hydrothermal vents).
Vent biodiversity
So far around 600 different organisms have been found at deep-sea hydrothermal vents.
This is a small number compared to the 500,000 – 10,000,000 species estimated to
inhabit the deep ocean, but vent organisms make up for their low diversity with a great
deal of evolutionary novelty and the fact that most are found nowhere else on Earth. They
exhibit many unusual adaptations to the severe, potentially toxic nature of the
hydrothermal fluids. High animal density and the presence of unusual species are now
known to be common characteristics of deep-sea hydrothermal vents all over the globe,
with the composition of the fauna varying between sites and regions. More than 100 vent
fields have been documented along the 60,000 km global mid-ocean ridge system since
the first discovery in 1977. Hydrothermal faunal communities occupy very small areas of
the seafloor and many sites contain animal species found nowhere else.
Cutting edge biological science has become an important stakeholder in this resource and
millions of research dollars are annually directed to laboratory and field studies of vent
organisms. Research missions with deep-diving submersibles visit several vent sites
around the world each year. Vent biology, in its brief history, has made major
contributions to the development of basic models of life processes. Most recent editions
of university textbooks in biology and ecology now use examples from hydrothermal
vents to illustrate points on symbiosis, detoxification, adaptation to extreme conditions
and ecosystem function.
While few of the novel animal species discovered at vents may be edible or of any
immediate material value, there is considerable interest from the biotechnology industry
in extreme vent microorganisms. Features such as tolerance to high temperatures and
toxic chemicals, rapid growth and unusual symbioses with bacteria are common at vents
and have attracted a great deal of research interest. Hydrothermal vents are sites
colonized by hyperthermophilic Bacteria and Archaea. They are called
hyperthermophiles because they grow at temperatures in excess of 80˚C. Enzymes from
these microorganisms have a range of specialized applications from molecular biology to
the food processing, fabric and chemical industries. Such enzymes are produced by
growing microorganisms in culture rather than harvesting biomass directly from the sea.
The "Taq" DNA polymerase enzyme, used worldwide in molecular biology, is produced
from Thermus aquaticus, a thermophile first isolated from terrestrial hot springs. Today,
the annual market for Taq polymerase is worth approximately $500 million per year.
Several DNA polymerase enzymes from hydrothermal organisms (Pfu DNA polymerase,
Deep VentR DNA Polymerase and others) now constitute a substantial share of this
market. We still know very little about the biodiversity of microbes at vents and their full
biotechnological potential remains unquantifiable. In addition to biotechnological
exploitation of vent microbes, the vent fauna is also attracting research interest from this
sector. One interesting examples comes from studies of the hemoglobin of a
hydrothermal vent worm by French researchers. This work has led to a promising
biotechnological development aimed at producing artificial blood from worm
hemoglobin (Harnois et al. 2009). It is important to point out the bioprospecting at
hydrothermal vents is very costly and development time for commercial products can
take many years. Nonetheless, there are strong economic, as well as ecological arguments
for preserving vent sites to safeguard this biodiversity and the genetic potential of both
the prokaryotic and higher organisms. The visually spectacular and extreme nature of
vent communities also makes them popular subjects for the science media and science
education sectors. Several of the world’s leading natural history museums feature new
exhibits on hydrothermal vents.
A brief consideration of mining impacts
Mining of hydrothermal polymetallic sulphides in coming decades will likely be
concentrated in a few limited areas where polymetallic sulphide deposits of commercial
size are known to occur. At these locations, extracting ore will result in removal of the
substratum and production of a particulate plume. Some organisms will be directly killed
by mining machinery, while others nearby risk smothering by material settling from the
particulate plume. The high degree of uniqueness of the vent fauna, together with their
limited distribution are important issues to be considered in developing strategies and
regulations for the mining. In contrast, microorganisms colonizing hydrothermal sites are
generally assumed to be drawn from a globally distributed gene pool and therefore little
threatened by localized mining activities. The biogeography of marine microbes has been
little studied and this view of their global distribution may eventually change.
Studies of the rapid colonization of new vents following seafloor eruptions demonstrate
the ability of the vent communities to re-establish at a severely disturbed site, as long
there are hydrothermal emissions to support microbial chemosynthesis. While time scales
for the establishment of mature, multi-species communities remain uncertain, high
biomass and faunal density levels are attained within a few years after eruptions (van
Dover, 2000). Observations of local shifting of vent species to adapt to changes in fluid
flow reinforce this notion of resilience. While it may be tempting to apply the resilience
argument to considerations of mining impact, it is important to point out that the mother
populations that permit repopulation after perturbation are themselves particularly
vulnerable to mining. There is some evidence that biodiversity within a given region is
greatest at larger, longer-lived hydrothermal sites. This is in keeping with what has been
observed in other ecosystems on Earth. Long-lived ‘mother populations’ may be critical
to the maintenance of vent species biodiversity within a region. These same long-lived
hydrothermal sites are also the most likely locations for accumulation of large sulphide
deposits and therefore will be prime targets for mining. As well, many localized species
many not have a nearby mother population or they may be unable to recolonize the
altered substratum after mining. In the latter case, only the establishment of protected
areas would prevent eradication of species.
Managing the impact of mining activities on hydrothermal vent ecosystems will present
many challenges to regulatory agencies. The remote and deep location of these
environments will mean that the mining industry and occasional scientific expeditions
will be the only regular visitors and therefore will be the primary source of ecosystem
information for managers. It will be essential that regulators, scientists and industry
maintain a close and regular exchange of information. Otherwise, management of these
vent ecosystems will be largely based on principles developed for near-shore marine
environments, where conservation of living ecosystem components and physical and
chemical properties are the primary high-level objectives. Maintaining an ecological
status quo is probably of little relevance to these deep-sea vent ecosystems whose
populations are virtually unquantifiable, where there is no documented ecosystem history
and where seafloor volcanic eruptions and seismic activity can completely eliminate
benthic communities in a matter of hours. If sustainable use for science and industry are
to be overall management goals, then specific objectives and plans will need to be
flexible and adapt to new knowledge of the ecosystem that researchers are acquiring each
year.
Research into the biology and ecology of hydrothermal vent organisms and other
chemosynthetic ecosystems is a multi-million dollar industry that attracts some of the
most talented researchers worldwide. Marine scientific research is therefore the most
important stakeholder at hydrothermal vents and needs to partner with commercial
exploitation of polymetallic sulphides to assure that mining is done in the most
environmentally responsible way possible (Hoagland et al. 2010).
Acknowledgements
The International Seabed Authority and the Fundacón Ramón Areces provided support
for the preparation of this paper and for travel to Madrid, Spain where the paper was
presented at the Seabed: The new frontier seminar held February 24-26, 2010.
References
Hoagland, P., S. Beaulieu, MA Tivey, R.G Eggert, C. German, L. Glowka, J. Lin (2010)
Deep-sea mining of seafloor massive sulfides. Marine Policy 34, 728-732.
Harnois, T., M. Rousselot, H. Rognieaux, F. Zal (2009) High-leve production of
recombinant Arenicola marina globin chains in Escherichia coli: A new generation of
blood substitute. Artificial Cells, Blood Substitutes and Biotechnology 37, 106-116.
Tunnicliffe, V. (1992) Hydrothermal-vent communities of the deep sea. American
Scientist 80: 336-350.
Van Dover, CL (2000) The ecology of deep-sea hydrothermal vents. Princeton University
Press, Princeton.
mln ton
100000
22586,2
10000
5846,0
1800,0
1360,0
1000
760,6
683,9
540,0
445,9
130,0
100
39,7
17,0
20,4
10
1,3
1,1
1
Mn
Ni
Ocean
Cu
Terrestial
Co
Mo
Zn
Ag
-110º 00'
-115º 00'
-120º 00'
-125º 00'
-130º 00'
-135º 00'
-140º 00'
-145º 00'
-150º 00'
-155º 00'
-160º 00'
30º 00'
30º 00'
28º 00'
28º 00'
T U R E
F R A C
24º 00'
Z O N E
24º 00'
I
K A
L O
O
M
Hawaii
20º 00'
20º 00'
Z O N E
R E
T U
C
A
F R
16º 00'
16º 00'
N
R I O
A
L
C
12º 00'
12º 00'
Clipperton
Island
Z O N E
8º 00'
8º 00'
E
U R
C T
A
F R
IOM's PROSPECTING AREA
N
T O
R
P E
I P
C L
4º 00'
Kiribati
LEGEND
4º 00'
CONTRACTORS AREAS:
ISA RESERVED AREAS:
APPLICATION AREAS OF POTENTIAL INVESTORS:
DORD (JAPAN)
OCEAN MINING ASSOCIATES (OMA)
IFREMER/AFERNOD (FRANCE)
OCEAN MANAGEMENT INCORPORATED (OMI - I)
YUZHMORGEOLOGIYA (RUSSIA)
OMI - II
COMRA (CHINA)
LOCKHEED MARTIN SYSTEMS Co. Inc. (LMS)
KORDI (KOREA)
INTEROCEANMETAL JOINT ORGANIZATION (IOM)
FIGNR (GERMANY)
-110º 00'
-115º 00'
-120º 00'
-125º 00'
-130º 00'
-135º 00'
-140º 00'
-145º 00'
-150º 00'
-155º 00'
0º 00'
-160º 00'
0º 00'
The activities of Germany
in relation to deep seabed mineral resource development
Prof. Dr. Peter M. Herzig
Director and CEO
Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences IFM-GEOMAR
Kiel, Germany
For many years, Germany has been active in world-wide scientific
investigations of seafloor mineral resources, including polymetallic
massive sulphide deposits, manganese nodules, manganese crusts and,
most recently, gas hydrates. A large number of research cruises have
been directed to the western and southwestern Pacific Ocean where
numerous new discoveries of copper- and gold-rich metal sulphide
deposits were made. A successful drilling cruise to the territorial waters
of Papua New Guinea has resulted in drill cores of massive sulphide
deposits that are now further investigated by commercial mining
companies. A new type of submarine gold deposit that was found at a
seamount in the same area has also generated the interest of mining
companies.
The German manganese nodule program currently focuses on the
German claim in the Clarion-Clipperton area and has resulted in a
renewed interest in the recovery of manganese nodules as a source for
nickel, copper and cobalt. This program is ongoing and supported by
German Federal authorities.
Gas hydrates are currently investigated for their potential of combining
CH4 recovery with the deposition of CO2. This concept has been
developed based on many years of fundamental research and, if proven
to be successful, may lead to a new industry combining two major issues
of today’s and future societies: the need for clean energy and the
protection of our climate.
1