The deep-sea mining industry was first confronted by Greenpeace at sea | Greenpeace int.

Activists on the Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior took action at sea against companies preparing to mine the bottom of the Pacific Ocean for the first time. The activists showed banners with the words "Stop Deep Sea Mining" in front of a ship from DeepGreen, one of the companies that mines in the hardly explored deep sea ecosystem.

A second peaceful protest also took place in the port of San Diego, USA, where Greenpeace activists hung a "Stop Deep Sea Mining" banner on the ship, which was chartered by another leading deep-sea mining company GSR from Belgium. This ship carries a mining robot  for tests at depths of more than 4.000 m on the international seabed of the Pacific Ocean.

Both protests point to the risks posed by the extractive industry, which is rapidly advancing its exploration activities and developing deep-sea mining technologies for commercial deep-sea mining. The deep ocean is one of the least understood and least explored ecosystems on earth, and is home to significant biodiversity.

Dr. Sandra Schoettner, deep sea biologist and ocean activist at Greenpeace, said: “Machines that weigh more than a humpback whale are already being set up for tests on the bottom of the Pacific Ocean. Scientists have repeatedly warned that deep-sea degradation would have dire consequences for ocean ecosystems, which we barely understand. Given the deteriorating climate and biodiversity crisis, deep sea mining is a scandalous threat to the health of our oceans. The deep sea must be closed to mining. "

Victor Pickering, a Fijian activist currently aboard the Rainbow Warrior, held a banner that read, "Our Pacific, not your Pacific!" He sagte: “The ocean provides food for our families and connects all of the Pacific islands from one island to another. I am taking action because our people, our country, are already exposed to extreme storms, rising sea levels, plastic pollution and industrially depleted fish populations. I can't stay silent and watch another threat - deep sea mining - take our future away. "

“Governments must agree on a global ocean treaty in 2021 that puts protection at the center of global ocean governance, not exploitation. The more we disturb the ocean floor, the more we endanger ourselves, especially the Pacific island communities that depend on healthy oceans, ”said Schoettner.