Podcast: A Deep Dive into Deep Sea Mining, Part 2 - Detecting and Preventing Ecological Impacts Draft

Determining the effects of deep-sea mining requires an experimental design in which samples are taken before and after disturbance at both the impacted and undisturbed control sites. A recent BA/CI study showed that mining caused significant changes in seafloor communities, and re-examination of a decades-old mining site showed that such effects were still detectable after 44 years. Calling for a ban on deep-sea mining might seem appropriate, but better solutions would involve finding ways to limit, study, and mitigate any future mining efforts.