Norwegian lawmakers gave the green light for deep-sea exploration around the Arctic Archipelago of Svalbard on January 9, sparking concern among environmental groups.
Members of the national parliament authorised deep-sea exploration in the 281,200 square kilometre area on Tuesday to pave the way for commercial exploitation of the minerals abundant in the North Atlantic shelf.
The region is wealthy in copper, manganese, cobalt and lithium, raw materials identified by the EU as of strategic importance as they are considered a prerequisite for the transition to a green and digital economy. Such minerals are currently mined in several countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, China and Russia.
In the Critical Raw Materials Act passed by the EU last December, these minerals were three of 16 listed among the highest-priority strategic raw materials.
International activists and environmental organisations gathered in front of Norway’s parliament ahead of Tuesday’s vote to mount pressure on MPs to “stop deep-sea mining.”
They warn of the “irreversible” impact that deep-sea mining could have on one of the last ecosystems unaffected by human activity. Steve Trent, CEO and founder of the Environmental Justice Foundation, stated after the vote:
“This decision irreparably damages Norway’s reputation as a responsible ocean state. We know little about the deep seabed, but we know enough to be certain that its exploitation will lead to the disappearance of unique fauna and flora and destroy the world’s largest carbon reservoir.”
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Norway called the voting day “a day of shame for Norway.”
This decision will remain a dark chapter in the history of what was once a proud port nation.
On November 9, some 100 EU MEPs urged their Norwegian counterparts to oppose the government’s proposal, drawing on “more than 700 scientific experts”, including the European Science Academies Advisory Council (EASAC), which back in June warned of “disastrous consequences for marine ecosystems”.
The Norwegian government, as well as the Conservative and Liberal parties, see Tuesday’s vote as an opportunity to accelerate the energy transition by securing rare earth elements for green technology. Norway’s prime minister and the man behind the project, Jonas Gahr Støre, called the minerals “an essential element of industrial transformation” last September.
Norwegian Conservative MP Bård Ludvig Thorheim warned in Altinget in early December that everything had to be done “step by step”. He stressed that the government should rely on impact studies before issuing any licence.
Extraction will not be allowed until future knowledge shows that it can be done in a sustainable and responsible way.
At the same time, more and more countries are refusing to participate in deep-sea exploration in the name of the precautionary principle. France, the only country other than the UK to oppose deep-sea mining in Norway, reiterated its position at the One Planet-Polar summit in Paris in early November.
Today, 24 countries are calling for a moratorium on deep-sea mining, although some countries such as Norway, China, India and Russia oppose such calls.
The European Commission has expressed concern about the environmental impact of these projects. In a resolution adopted by the European Parliament in 2022, MEPs called on the Commission and member states to support an international moratorium.
The International Seabed Authority, a UN-affiliated organisation that regulates these activities in international waters, plans to meet this year. But pressure to open up mining rights is growing as a vote on the first mining code, which Norway is seeking, is expected as early as 2025.
