Ireland has supported calls for a “precautionary pause” on deep-sea mining on the international seabed.
The “pause” means that no deep-sea mining should take place until a “robust” regulatory framework is in place to protect the marine environment, and until scientific knowledge is sufficient for informed decision-making.
Welcoming the decision, three government ministers also said that Ireland will endorse a political declaration calling for a partnership of the sea, initially made on behalf of 13 countries as part of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in March of this year.
Ireland is a member of the ISA, which was established by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Irish representatives will take part in ISA meetings from July 10th.
The Department of Foreign Affairs says that to date, the ISA has only authorised exploration activities but says there have been recent efforts by some states and mining companies to accelerate moves towards an exploitation phase.
This is in spite of “the fact that negotiations on a mining code, including environmental regulations, have yet to be concluded, and significant scientific knowledge gaps persist”, it says.
Welcoming the decision by Government, Tánaiste Micheál Martin said that “Ireland today joins a growing chorus of countries, scientists, civil society organisations and private companies calling for a precautionary pause of deep-sea mining”.
He was supported by Minister for Housing Darragh O’Brien, who is responsible for marine planning, and Minister of State for Heritage Malcolm Noonan.
