standardization of environmental data and information - International ...

Because the exploration claims cover a very much greater area than
would be impacted by the mining operations, any detailed baseline
characterisation completed prior to the specification of the actual test and
mine-site locations is not likely to be in an area where tests or mining will
ever take place. Thus, baseline collection efforts undertaken before the
specification of these sites should be considered only if adequate baseline
characterisation cannot be established during the time between the
specification of the test location and the initiation of commercial mining.
3. Key environmental variables in the claim areas
While it is true that significant acquisition of site-specific
environmental data will have to be completed by contractors before
commercial development can be initiated, it is also true that significant data
have been collected in these areas already. Section 5 below describes the
general location of the exploration claim areas and presents a more
detailed discussion of the environmental data available for them. The
present section focuses on how environmental data standards can help
promote the efficient acquisition of some of the most important information
needed for successful implementation of an undersea-mining programme.
3.1. Occurrence of potentially commercial deposits
Manganese nodules are common worldwide in both marine and
freshwater systems. Conditions which particularly favour high abundance of
manganese nodules with relatively high levels of copper, nickel and cobalt
include: (1) relatively high inputs of dissolved and organically complexed
metals; (2) relatively low levels of other types of sedimentation, such as
aluminosilicates and carbonates, and (3) long-term stability of the seabed
surface, allowing time for deposit accumulation.
These characteristics are best developed on the seabed under the
tropical oceans in areas which have high primary productivity in surface
waters, which are far from land sources of sediments and which are deep
enough so that carbonate sedimentation is mostly dissolved before it
accumulates. It is probably no coincidence that the highest abundances
and grades of manganese nodule deposits (as evidenced by the locations of
the current international exploration activity) fall in the areas of the world’s
oceans that are farthest from land.
Because of this remoteness, opportunities for study of these deepsea
environments are rare and the investigations are expensive.
INTERNATIONAL SEABED AUTHORITY 104