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1 Study Summary
habitats is variable, but is generally insufficient to define the necessary environment
and biodiversity protection plans in case of resource exploitation. In particular, it is
important to understand the natural variability of an ecosystem in order to assess the
level of impact of mining activities; however information on these aspects in deepsea environments is limited. It is therefore essential to promote research in order to
more fully understand the biological diversity and dynamics of these ecosystems.
Protecting the Environment
With a view to the exploitation of deep-sea mineral resources, a general theory
approach aimed at defining environmentally-friendly solutions may be discussed.
During the exploration phase intended to identify, assess and inventory the resource
and map deposits, the first stage involves characterising the surrounding environment on a regional scale (water column and seabed) and the biological diversity
found there. In the water column, hydrodynamic, chemical and trophic parameters
are the most relevant. As for the seabed, habitats—defined firstly by depth—substrates and trophic sources should be mapped, the environment specific to each
habitat characterised and the related animal communities described.
Following the identification of sites for exploitation and extraction techniques,
the direct and indirect consequences of mining on the environment and biodiversity
must be assessed, by experimental approaches or in the natural environment, as
well as the ecosystem’s restoration or resilience capacity following destruction and/
or disturbance. Long term monitoring of the impacted area and a natural area with
the same characteristics should be carried out to distinguish the consequences of
mining activities on biodiversity from the environment’s natural variability. All the
knowledge acquired during these various phases will build indispensable foundations for defining and setting up biodiversity protection areas.
Scenarios and Related Challenges
The analysis of deep-sea mineral resources by 2030 was divided into three stages:
first, the study of exogenous and endogenous variables for six compartments of the
global environment (in blue in Fig. 1.7 below), then for the intermediate context and
finally for the mineral resources themselves.
System Variables
Global Framework Exogenous Variables
• Globalisation and growth.
• Crises.
1 Study Summary
habitats is variable, but is generally insufficient to define the necessary environment
and biodiversity protection plans in case of resource exploitation. In particular, it is
important to understand the natural variability of an ecosystem in order to assess the
level of impact of mining activities; however information on these aspects in deepsea environments is limited. It is therefore essential to promote research in order to
more fully understand the biological diversity and dynamics of these ecosystems.
Protecting the Environment
With a view to the exploitation of deep-sea mineral resources, a general theory
approach aimed at defining environmentally-friendly solutions may be discussed.
During the exploration phase intended to identify, assess and inventory the resource
and map deposits, the first stage involves characterising the surrounding environment on a regional scale (water column and seabed) and the biological diversity
found there. In the water column, hydrodynamic, chemical and trophic parameters
are the most relevant. As for the seabed, habitats—defined firstly by depth—substrates and trophic sources should be mapped, the environment specific to each
habitat characterised and the related animal communities described.
Following the identification of sites for exploitation and extraction techniques,
the direct and indirect consequences of mining on the environment and biodiversity
must be assessed, by experimental approaches or in the natural environment, as
well as the ecosystem’s restoration or resilience capacity following destruction and/
or disturbance. Long term monitoring of the impacted area and a natural area with
the same characteristics should be carried out to distinguish the consequences of
mining activities on biodiversity from the environment’s natural variability. All the
knowledge acquired during these various phases will build indispensable foundations for defining and setting up biodiversity protection areas.
Scenarios and Related Challenges
The analysis of deep-sea mineral resources by 2030 was divided into three stages:
first, the study of exogenous and endogenous variables for six compartments of the
global environment (in blue in Fig. 1.7 below), then for the intermediate context and
finally for the mineral resources themselves.
System Variables
Global Framework Exogenous Variables
• Globalisation and growth.
• Crises.