Will the polymetallic nodules – valuable rocks containing rare metals – that rest on the abyssal plains remain at the bottom of the ocean, and for how much longer? At the One Ocean Science Congress, which brought together more than 2,000 scientists from June 3 to 6 ahead of the United Nations Ocean Conference (UNOC), this question weighed heavily on the minds of many researchers. Mining rare minerals from the deep ocean could have serious consequences for these largely unknown ecosystems. Yet, pressure for the commercial exploitation of these resources – which could be used to manufacture batteries, for example – has been mounting, notably from the mining industry.

Canada-based The Metals Company has grown impatient with the slow pace of negotiations that have dragged on for a decade within the International Seabed Authority (ISA). Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the international organization is tasked with regulating the exploitation of the "Zone" – the seabed and subsoil in international waters, which do not belong to any state. Finalizing a mining code has proven particularly challenging, given the sharp disagreements among delegations. Some countries are eyeing these oceanic resources, while a group of about 30 states is calling for a moratorium – a "precautionary pause" – or even a ban, as is the case with France.

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