Protecting underwater ecosystems from the growing interest in rare mineral mining, framing deep-sea laws and building a biobank are among landmark achievements of the UN's International Seabed Authority ( ISA ), which is marking its 30th anniversary at its Kingston, Jamaica, headquarters.
At a time when the international community seeks to regulate the rich tapestry of the planet's ocean floors while countries and corporations speed towards deep-sea mining opportunities, here's what you need to know about ISA and why it matters now:
What does it do?
ISA manages the mineral resources of the seabed beyond national jurisdiction, which covers 54 per cent of the world's oceans, for "the shared benefit of all humankind".
Created by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1994, ISA is aims to ensure that all economic activities in the deep seabed, including mining, are regulated and responsibly managed.
Mandated to ensure the effective protection of the marine environment from harmful effects that may arise from deep-seabed-related activities, its work also contributes to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
Why it matters now?
As the world's only international body that focuses on the deep-sea area beyond national borders, ISA aims to address pressing concerns, from plastic waste littering oceans to the race to secure rare earth minerals to quench the world's insatiable thirst for lithium batteries and a range of tech items.
What kind of rare earth minerals are on the ocean floor? Copper, cobalt, gold, lanthanum, neodymium, nickel, silver, yttrium and zinc to name a few.
Right now, countries can pursue deep-sea mining within their own territorial waters or "exclusive economic zones". But, under international law, the deep seabed belongs to no single country or corporation, ISA Secretary-General Leticia Carvalho wrote in a recent op-ed.
"It is our common heritage," she said.
What's the draft mining code?
Right now, nations are looking for ever more sources of rare earth minerals to meet demand for renewable energy technologies and such items as mobile phones and computers. The deep-sea contains a plethora of supplies. That's where the draft mining code comes in.
During its 30th session, ISA members are working on a draft code that would protect the marine environment and build a foundation for ensuring that any activities in the deep-sea area are conducted responsibly and in line with environmental sustainability principles as well as benefitting all of humanity.
Tackling the 'missing plastics paradox'
Plastic pollution is another part of the problem. To address this and other pressing issues, ISA members adopted a global research agenda in July 2020, serving as an action plan for marine scientific research with six strategic priorities that include advancing knowledge of deep-sea ecosystems, promoting data sharing and providing insights into the scientific landscape of plastics in the deep-sea.
This latter growing global challenge has potential consequences for the sustainable use of oceans. In 2019, the plastics industry produced over 450 million tonnes of plastic, a figure expected to rise in the coming decades and is likely to increase pressure on marine environments and species. Yet, a portion of plastics entering the oceans remains unaccounted for, a phenomenon known as the "missing plastics paradox".
Some researchers suggest that the deep sea may act as a sink for plastic debris, where their prolonged persistence could pose risks to these environments.
The world's new deep-sea biobank
ISA has also just begun filling its new biobank, launched in June on the margins of the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France. The Deep-Sea Biobank Initiative (DBI) aims to enhance access to deep-sea biological samples and genetic data collected from the international seabed area.
Designed to promote deep-sea research and inclusive scientific collaboration, particularly for developing States, the initiative will establish a global repository of biological samples and develop standard operating procedures to enhance data quality, sharing and use by stakeholders.
"The DBI is ISA's response to a growing need to advance research, share data, build capacity and facilitate access to deep-sea knowledge, particularly for developing States," said the authority's chief Carvalho. "We aim to create standardised and equitable pathways for scientific collaboration, empowering countries and institutions to explore, understand and protect the ocean's most remote ecosystems."
'DeepData' diving
The wealth of data and information ISA has collected has been critical to shaping environmental management plans. Every data byte collected through deep-sea exploration adds critical new information about life in the ocean and assists with decision making.
In launching the DeepData database in 2019, ISA made publicly available for the first time the biggest and most complete global repository of environmental data and information on the deep-sea area.
Exactly how much data has been collected? As of May 2023, DeepData contained over 10 terabytes, roughly equivalent to 6.9 million Instagram uploads. Widely used around the world, it had about 2.4 million hits from visitors in 2022 alone and more than 160 citations in scientific publications.
Learn more about ISA here .
Fast facts
- The International Seabed Authority (ISA) has 170 members
- ISA is an autonomous intergovernmental organization established by the UN
- Members meet annually to address pressing issues
- The 30th session concludes with the ISA assembly meeting from 21 to 25 July in Kingston, Jamaica
