The U.S. government is exploring the potential of deep sea mining to provide rare earth elements crucial for future transportation technologies like electric vehicle batteries. Congress has approved funding to investigate the feasibility of extracting these minerals from the ocean floor. That could reduce America’s reliance on foreign suppliers like China, which currently dominates the global rare earth market.
Lawmakers are in discussions with representatives from the deep sea mining industry to understand how these elements could be processed domestically. However, this initiative faces opposition from environmentalists and some automakers due to potential ecological risks.
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Greenpeace has raised concerns that deep sea mining could lead to ocean pollution and harm marine life. Prominent car manufacturers — including BMW, Volvo and Volkswagen — have expressed their opposition to using these ocean-derived resources. Instead, they are advocating for a moratorium on such exploration efforts.
General Motors (GM) opted to take a different approach. The company’s shareholders recently voted against a proposal that would have required GM to disclose its use of deep sea minerals. Tesla is also expected to address this topic during its upcoming shareholders’ meeting on June 13.
Proponents within the deep sea mining industry say that the potential environmental consequences of obtaining these materials from the ocean floor has been exaggerated. Some argue that whether the resources are extracted from land or sea, some level of impact is inevitable. They suggest that the relatively secluded depths of the ocean, which have minimal marine life and are far from human populations, could be a less disruptive option.
Tags: Auto industry, BMW, China, Deep sea mining, Electric Vehicle Batteries, Electric vehicles, General Motors, Greenpeace, Rare earth metals, Volkswagen, Volvo
[JACK AYLMER]
AUTOMAKERS COULD USE THE OCEAN FLOOR TO POWER THE FUTURE OF TRANSPORTATION.
THE U.S. GOVERNMENT IS OPEN TO THE IDEA.
BUT ENVIRONMENTALISTS SAY NOT SO FAST.
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS APPROVED A PLAN TO DETERMINE WHETHER DEEP SEA MINING FOR RARE EARTH ELEMENTS IS A VIABLE OPTION.
CONGRESS SIGNING OFF ON FUNDING TO EXPLORE THE FEASIBILITY OF EXTRACTING RARE EARTHS FROM THE OCEAN.
LAWMAKERS HAVE BEEN MEETING WITH REPRESENTATIVES FROM THE DEEP-SEA MINING INDUSTRY TO DISCUSS HOW THESE MINERALS WOULD THEN BE PROCESSED ON U.S. SOIL.
A MOVE LIKE THAT WOULD DECREASE AMERICAN DEPENDENCE ON FOREIGN ADVERSARIES LIKE CHINA-
WITH BEIJING CURRENTLY IN CONTROL OF MOST OF THE GLOBAL RARE EARTH SUPPLY.
BUT AUTOMAKERS MIGHT BE HESITANT TO UTILIZE THIS POTENTIAL U.S. RARE EARTH SUPPLY CHAIN DUE TO ITS ENVIRONMENTAL IMPLICATIONS.
GREENPEACE WARNS THAT EXTRACTING THESE ELEMENTS COULD POLLUTE THE OCEANS AND POTENTIALLY KILL A NUMBER OF AQUATIC SPECIES.
SEVERAL CAR COMPANIES INCLUDING BMW, VOLVO, AND VOLKSWAGEN HAVE CALLED FOR A PAUSE ON DEEP SEA MINING EXPLORATION EFFORTS.
THEY SAY THEY WON’T USE RESOURCES FROM THE OCEAN FLOOR IN THEIR PRODUCTS.
GENERAL MOTORS ON THE OTHER HAND THIS MONTH DECIDED NOT TO DISCLOSE THEIR USAGE OF DEEP SEA MINERALS.
THE AUTOMAKER’S SHAREHOLDERS VOTING AGAINST A PROPOSAL THAT WOULD HAVE REQUIRED GM TO CREATE A REPORT ON HOW THEY UTILIZE THESE RESOURCES.
TESLA HAS A SIMILAR DECISION TO MAKE-
AS THE ELON MUSK BRAND PREPARES FOR ITS OWN UPCOMING SHAREHOLDERS MEETING WHERE THE TOPIC IS EXPECTED TO BE DISCUSSED.
THOSE WITHIN THE DEEP SEA MINING INDUSTRY CONTEND THAT MANY OF THE FEARS AGAINST THIS PRACTICE ARE OVERHYPED.
ARGUING THAT GETTING THESE MATERIALS WHETHER BY LAND OR SEA WILL HAVE AN ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT-
SO- WHY NOT HAVE THAT HAPPEN IN THE RELATIVE SECLUSION OF THE OCEAN’S DEPTHS.
A PLACE WITH MINIMAL MARINE LIFE AND OVER A THOUSAND MILES FROM THE NEAREST HUMAN.
THE DEBATE OVER THE PROS AND CONS OF DEEP SEA MINING EFFORTS IS ONGOING- WITH GOVERNMENTS FROM AROUND THE WORLD NOW JOINING THE DISCOURSE. TO KEEP UP WITH THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS, DOWNLOAD THE STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS APP AND SIGN UP FOR ALERTS FROM ME – JACK AYLMER – SO YOU CAN STAY INFORMED.
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