OP-ED : Against deep-sea mining, the international movement must grow!

As the International Seabed Authority Assembly gathers in Kingston, more than 70 Parliamentarians, from 25 countries all around the world, renew their support to a moratorium on deep-sea mining and urge all States of the ISA Assembly to work swiftly towards this goal.

Without oceans, no life on earth. The statement is clear.

As we, parliamentarians from all around the world, write these words, States are meeting in Kingston for the International seabed Authority’s Assembly, where they could decide to prevent the launch of a new massive ocean’s destruction gear: deep-sea mining.

This is the newest project of the mining industry: opening mines at the bottom of the oceans. Even if the seabed is even less known than the surface of the moon. Even if deep sea mining would affect irreversibly sensitive ecosystems, liberate huge quantities of carbon, as well as risk harming marine animals such as whales, because of the noise pollution that will be generated.

Energy transition cannot justify such an environmental destruction. If we strengthen energy sobriety, efficiency and recycling, we will not have to exploit the deep seabed for our batteries and technology.

 

This is clearly not the opinion of The Metals Company. Led by the lure of profit, this company has triggered, through the State of Nauru, a two-year rule that could open up the deep-seabed to the mining industry as early as this summer. Since the beginning of July, they could apply for a mining permit at any time. 

Since then, the mobilization is growing calling for a moratorium to prevent this madness. Last month, the European Academies’ Science Advisory Council denounced the misleading arguments of its defendants. It highlighted the disastrous environmental consequences and contested the commercial interest of this exploitation.

Governments are taking action. From Fiji republic in June 2022 to Canada in July 2023, eighteen States have called for an international moratorium, a precautionary pause or a ban. This growing mobilization is encouraging but more States need to take a stand against deepsea mining. 

Mobilization must be stronger. A huge international movement is taking shape, led by the States already calling for a moratorium.

This is why, from Vanuatu to France, via Cameroon and Portugal, we, parliamentarians from all over the world, gathered around an Alliance for a Moratorium on Seabed Mining, are today calling on our respective States, and all the States of the world, to :

  • support the international moratorium on deep-sea mining until we have sufficient knowledge of the risks of this activity on the marine environment and guarantees that it will not lead to any loss of biodiversity

  • commit to oppose all applications for mining permits

  • support an extensive reform of the International Seabed Authority

More than 257 parliamentarians for more than 50 different countries already signed the Global parliamentary declaration calling for a moratorium on deep seabed mining initiated one year ago in the Lisbon Summit. And this number is getting bigger and bigger.

We add our voices to those of the NGOs, scientists, indigenous peoples and companies that support an international moratorium on these activities, which carry far too great a risk for the environment and the climate. Their launch would run completely counter to the international commitments on biodiversity adopted in Montreal in 2022, counter to the respect for the precautionary principle and counter for the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities.

Finally, we call on our parliamentary colleagues around the world to join us in urgently mobilizing their governments against deep-sea mining.

 

Sahar Alqawasmi, Member of the Palestinian National Council, Palestine

Manon Aubry, Member of the European Parliament, France

Margrete Auken, Member of the European Parliament, Denmark

Agho Oliver Bamenju, Member of the National Assembly, Cameroon

Julien Bayou, Deputy, France

Lisa Belluco, Deputy, France

Guy Benarroche, Senator, France

Michael Bernhard, Member of Parliament, Austria

Mockaël Bouloux, Deputy, France

Manuel Bompard, Deputy, France

Daniel Breuiller, Senator, France

Saskia Bricmont, Member of the European Parliament, Belgium

Dr Angela Brown Burke, Member of Parliament, Jamaica

Graciela Camano, Deputy, Argentina

Damien Carême, Member of the European Parliament, France

Sylvain Carrière, Deputy, France

Hugon Claire, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Samuel Cogolati, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Greet Daems, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Severine De Laveleye, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Karen Erodi, Deputy, France

Malte Gallee, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Raquel Garrido, Deputy, France

Bernard Georges, Member of the National Assembly, Seychelles

Clémence Guetté, Deputy, France

Francisco Guerreiro, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal

José Gusmao, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal

Anja Hazekamp, Member of the European Parliament, Netherlands

Laurence Hennuy, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Simon Holmström, Member of the Åland Parliament, Finland

Andrés Ingi Jónsson, member of Alþingi, Parliament of Iceland

Hubert Julien-Laferrière, Deputy, France

Hon Dr Ephraim Abel Kayembe, Member of Parliament, Malawi

Andy Kerbat, Deputy, France

Simon Kofe, Member of Parliament, Tuvalu

Hon. Andy Labonte, Member of the National Assembly, Seychelles

Aurore Lalucq, Member of the European Parliament, France

Pierre Larrouturou, Member of the European Parliament, France

Elise Leboucher, Deputy, France

Charlotte Leduc, Deputy, France

Rebecka Le Moine, Member of Parliament, Sweden

Caroline Lucas, Member of the House of Commons, United Kingdom

Frédéric Mathieu, Deputy, France

Louis Mariage, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Marisa Matias, Member of the European Parliament, Portugal

Thomas Naessens, Member of the Brussels Parliament, Belgium

Nathalie Oziol, Deputy, France

Mathilde Panot, Deputy, France

Francesca Paquini, Deputy, France

Ingrid Parmentier, Member of the Brussels Parliament, Belgium

Kira Marie Peter-Hansen, Member of the European Parliament, Denmark

Marie Pochon, Deputy, France

Raymonde Poncet Monge, Senator, France

Loic Prud'homme, Deputy, France

Hon. Ralph Regenvanu, Member of Parliament, Vanuatu

Dharma Raj Regmi, Member of Parliament, Nepal

Sandra Regol, Deputy, France

Manuela Ripa, Member of the European Parliament, Germany

Tristan Roberti, Member of the Brussels Parliament, Belgium

Alfons Röblom, Member of the Åland Parliament, Finland

Astrid Rössler, Member of the National Assembly, Austria

Sandrine Rousseau, Deputy, France

Mounir Satouri, Member of the European Parliament, France

Anne Stambach-Terrenoir, Deputy, France

Nicolas Thierry, Deputy, France

Ernest Urtasun, Member of the European Parliament, Spain

Olivier Vajda, Member of the Federal Parliament, Belgium

Eva Marie van Esch, Member of the House of Representatives, Netherlands

Lammert Van Raan, Member of Parliament, Netherlands

Anthony Vieira, Member of Parliament, Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

Niinistö Ville, Member of the European Parliament, Finland

Nicolas Walder, Member of Parliament, Switzerland

Léo Walter, Deputy, France

Jennifer Whitmore, Member of Parliament, Republic of Ireland

Précédent
Précédent

Face aux canicules, il faut modifier le Code du Travail ! - Mon interview pour France Info

Suivant
Suivant

Une victoire importante contre l'alliance des droites européennes ! - Mon interview pour France Inter