Andrew Lewin dives into the controversial topic of deep-sea mining and its implications for the environment. He questions whether mining the deep sea for metals to create electric vehicle batteries truly benefits the planet or if there are better alternatives. The discussion raises concerns about the potential impact on the ocean and the need to explore alternative solutions for a sustainable future.
Link to article: https://www.sciencealert.com/mysterious-dark-oxygen-discovered-at-bottom-of-ocean-stuns-scientists
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Deep sea nodules, highly sought after for mining due to their valuable metal content, have recently been discovered to play a crucial role in oxygen production in the deep sea. Composed of cobalt, manganese, and nickel, these nodules form a polymetallic matrix that can generate a significant voltage when clustered together. This voltage is essential for splitting oxygen from water, a process that typically requires light for photosynthesis to occur. However, in the dark depths of the deep sea where light does not penetrate, these nodules serve as natural geobatteries, generating the necessary voltage to produce oxygen.
The discovery of oxygen production by deep sea nodules challenges the conventional wisdom surrounding deep sea mining. While deep sea mining has been promoted as a means to extract valuable metals for various industries, the potential impact on oxygen production in the deep sea raises significant concerns. The presence of these nodules not only supports diverse ecosystems but also contributes to the geochemical processes that sustain life in the deep sea.
The revelation that deep sea nodules are involved in oxygen production underscores the complexity of deep sea ecosystems and the interconnectedness of marine life. The implications of deep sea mining on oxygen production and ecosystem health must be carefully considered in light of this new information. The balance between economic interests and environmental conservation becomes even more delicate when the fundamental role of these nodules in oxygen production is taken into account.
This discovery prompts a reevaluation of the necessity and sustainability of deep sea mining practices. It raises questions about the long-term consequences of extracting nodules from their natural habitat and the potential disruption to oxygen production and deep sea ecosystems. As we continue to explore and understand the deep sea, it is essential to prioritize the protection of these vital ecosystems and consider alternative approaches to resource extraction that minimize harm to the environment.
The discovery of "dark oxygen" in the deep sea, as discussed in the podcast episode, has significant implications for the ongoing debate surrounding deep-sea mining. The revelation that certain nodules sought after for mining are actually contributing to oxygen production in the deep sea challenges the perceived necessity of deep-sea mining for metals like cobalt, manganese, and nickel.
The presence of these nodules, which create a polymetallic matrix capable of producing oxygen, raises questions about the trade-off between resource extraction and environmental conservation. Deep sea mining companies have invested substantial resources in developing technologies to extract these nodules efficiently. However, the newfound understanding of the role of these nodules in oxygen production highlights the potential consequences of disrupting deep-sea habitats for mining purposes.
The episode emphasizes the importance of considering the impact of deep-sea mining on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. Areas rich in these nodules exhibit higher biodiversity levels compared to mined regions, indicating the potential ecological harm caused by mining activities. The interconnected nature of deep-sea ecosystems underscores the need to evaluate the long-term effects of deep-sea mining on species dispersal and habitat connectivity.
Furthermore, the discovery of "dark oxygen" challenges the traditional understanding of oxygen production in the absence of sunlight. This raises questions about the origins of aerobic life and the evolution of complex organisms in oxygen-deprived environments. The implications of disrupting the natural processes that contribute to oxygen production in the deep sea underscore the need for a more comprehensive assessment of the environmental costs and benefits of deep-sea mining.
In conclusion, the revelation of "dark oxygen" in the deep sea prompts a reevaluation of the necessity and consequences of deep-sea mining. It calls for a balanced approach that considers both the economic benefits of resource extraction and the preservation of deep-sea habitats and biodiversity. The ongoing debate surrounding deep-sea mining must now incorporate the newfound knowledge of oxygen production in the deep sea to make informed decisions about the future of deep-sea exploration and conservation.
The discovery of oxygen-producing nodules in the deep sea sheds light on the intricate interconnectedness of ocean ecosystems and the potential consequences of deep sea mining on marine life dispersal and population dynamics. The presence of these nodules, sought after for mining due to their metal content, plays a crucial role in providing oxygen in the dark depths of the ocean where photosynthesis is not possible.
The episode discusses how these nodules, composed of cobalt, manganese, and nickel, create a polymetallic matrix that can produce enough voltage to split oxygen from water without the need for sunlight. This process not only sustains oxygen levels in the deep sea but also supports a more biodiverse community of animals in areas where these nodules are present. The higher diversity of fauna in nodular-rich regions compared to unmined areas underscores the importance of these nodules in maintaining healthy deep-sea ecosystems.
Furthermore, the episode raises questions about the potential impacts of deep-sea mining on marine life dispersal and population dynamics. It highlights the interconnected nature of ocean ecosystems, where organisms rely on various mechanisms, such as larval dispersal, to populate different areas of the deep sea. The removal of nodules through mining could disrupt these natural processes, leading to changes in population dynamics and potentially affecting the overall health and resilience of deep-sea ecosystems.
Overall, the presence of oxygen-producing nodules in the deep sea serves as a reminder of the delicate balance within marine ecosystems and the need for careful consideration of the impacts of human activities, such as deep-sea mining, on these interconnected systems. The episode prompts a critical examination of the trade-offs between resource extraction and ecosystem conservation in the deep sea, emphasizing the importance of sustainable practices to protect the biodiversity and functioning of these unique and fragile environments.
This dark oxygen discovery in the deep sea changes everything we know about deep sea mining. We're gonna talk about on today's episode of the How to Protect the Ocean podcast. Let's start the show. (upbeat music) Hey everybody, welcome back to another exciting episode of the How to Protect the Ocean podcast. I am your host, Andrew Lewin. This is the podcast where you find out what's happening with the ocean, how you can speak up for the ocean, and what you can do to live for a better ocean by taking action. And for a long time, for the probably the last 10 years, deep sea mining has been one of the issues that people and scientists and all sorts of people have been worried about for a long time. There's been a moratorium on deep sea mining until recently when certain countries have decided, even though a lot of other countries said that we're gonna keep the moratorium in place, they're gonna start exploring whether deep sea mining is going to be efficient, is going to make money. The reason why we're doing deep sea mining is for specific metals, like cobalt, that will go into electric vehicle batteries, EV batteries, so that we can do better for the planet, but are we gonna do better for the planet, right? Do we actually have to mess up the deep sea by mining the metals in the deep sea to make the planet better because we will be able to create more cars that have less fossil fuel exhaust and greenhouse gases going into the atmosphere? We're gonna mess up the ocean, which provides us with the oxygen we need to breathe, and the deep sea, which we know virtually nothing about when you really think about it, and we're gonna deep sea mine it to make the planet better. It just doesn't really add up for a lot of people, although the people who are doing the work and trying to build more EVs or saying they're doing it better, like they're doing a good thing for the planet, are they really, is this really what needs to be done? Can we not come up with something different? And that's been the debate. That's really been the debate is this really the thing that we need to do to make the planet better. Can we not find an alternative? And even if we did, I remember talking to Andrew Thaler, Dr. Andrew Thaler, who is a deep sea biologist, and he's done a lot of work with deep sea mining, including authoring and being the chief editor of a deep sea mining magazine for quite some time. He even said that even though if we start deep sea mining today, the metals that will be mined from the deep sea won't be put into production till about 50 years down the road. Will we still need those metals in our batteries, in our EV batteries down at that point in time? The battery technology is getting better and better, and we're requiring less and less of these metals. Now, the problem with mining these metals right now is their mind in, you know, cobalt mines in Africa, which do not have good human rights history in terms of the mining. There are rumors and videos showing, you know, children mining, just it looks chaotic. It doesn't look like they're being taken care of, like we have some mines in North America and in the West, as well as in Europe. So, you know, obviously a lot of problems with that. However, when we start to look at the deep sea and we're doing more and more studies on the deep sea, a new discovery was made. And that some of those nodules that are gonna be mined are actually good for the deep sea and probably belong in the deep sea. Why was it because they create oxygen? That's right. The deep sea, which is a dark zone, it's not a photo zone, meaning light from the sun does not penetrate down to the 2,000 meters or 6,000 meters or even past 100 meters, let's say, to get to light up the area. And why is that important? Why do we think that when there's no light, we don't get oxygen because normally we think, hey, photosynthesis gives us oxygen. The process of plants taking in carbon dioxide and spitting out oxygen through that process is what really gives us the oxygen that we need to breathe. So we look at plants, we look at trees, we look at phytoplankton from the ocean. That produces a lot of oxygen. That's why we say every second breath you take, you should thank the ocean and the phytoplankton in the ocean that produces the oxygen that provides us with that oxygen to breathe, with the grayed air that we breathe in now. But now, that light doesn't penetrate down to the deep sea, yet these nodules that are on the bottom are actually areas where there's high oxygen levels. So the researchers that published this study in a photo, in a scientific journal called Nature Geoscience, they were quite surprised because as they had their detectors, as they had their instruments to detect oxygen down towards the bottom of the sea, they noticed that oxygen was increasing when normally it decreases. So why does this increase? They don't know. They thought there was something wrong with the sensors. So they sent down different sensors, better sensors. And they noticed that they were having the same results, higher oxygen, increased oxygen as they got towards the bottom. They're like, what is the difference now where we're seeing, hey, there's an increased oxygen in these certain areas. And what they noticed was that there were these nodules, these nodules that are known for deep sea mining, that are sought after for deep sea mining. These are nodules that are made up of cobalt manganese and nickel. And if they're all jumbled up together, they make this polymetallic matrix. And it's like this mix of basically metals, right? And when these are mixed, what a single polymetallic nodule will produce about 0.95 volts. Now hold on a second with them. Just stay with me for a little bit because I'm gonna tell you why this is important. When they're clustered together, right? Not the singular one that has 0.95 volts, but when they're clustered together, they can actually reach a voltage of 1.5 volts. Why is that important? Because that's what it takes to split oxygen from water. So in the deep sea, there's a lot of water, right? It's pressurized and it takes about 1.5 volts to split the oxygen from the water of the H2O molecule. And so you will get oxygen. So when you have those nodules there, it produces enough voltage to have that reaction happen without light there. The light produces the voltage to have that reaction to happen. However, when you're in the deep sea, you don't have light. So you have these nodules. So in areas where these nodules are, you get a little bit more biodiverse animals. You still get a diversity of animals there. When there are no nodules on the sea floor, you're not getting as many animals out there. You're not getting the diversity. You're not getting that complexity. So these nodules, which are sought after for deep sea mining, are also good for oxygen. So this begs the question, what do we do? From a conservation perspective, from an ocean perspective, how does this change the sort of sought after deep sea mining that countries are looking for? How does this change the companies who have spent millions upon millions upon millions of even hundreds of millions trying to find ways to efficiently extract these nodules from the deep sea without harming the surrounding sea, their surrounding deep sea areas? How do, what do we say to these companies? Is this the thing that will ban deep sea mining knowing that having oxygen down there is gonna be really important for these habitats, right? Really important for the geochemical processes in the ocean, in the deep sea ocean. If we take those out, what is that going to do to the deep sea? We're just scratching the surface with its discovery, but this is a massive discovery in deep sea science. This is something that could change everything. You know, this 1.5 volts, basically it's appears to the authors say they discovered a natural geobattery. That was from Frank Geiger, Franz Geiger from the University of Northwestern University, Kayza Chemis, says these geobatteries are the basis for a possible explanation of the Earth's dark oxygen production. So knowing that oxygen is produced in the deep sea is one discovery, knowing how it's produced is another. Obviously there are more experiments that need to be done, more studies that need to be researched, and we need to find out how this is going to happen. But this is huge, you know, and he says, you know, this is a reason why such dead zones persist for decades until unknown. So they did actually do, in 2016, 2017, marine biologists visited sites that were mined in the 1980s. So deep sea sites that were mined in the 1980s, and found that not even bacteria had recovered in mined areas. In unmined regions, however, marine life flourished. So why such dead zones persist for decades is still unknown, but however, this puts a major asterisk onto strategies for sea floor mining as ocean, floor, fauna, diversity in nodule-rich areas is higher than the most diverse tropical rainforests. That is insane, right? This is why we need to do more discovery, we need to be doing more exploration in the deep sea. We need to find out why this is happening, where this is persisting, and how that affects the deep sea. How do we look at what we do? And it's really interesting because it says ancient microbiome, microbiome, cyanobacteria have long been credited for first supplying oxygen that are actually required for the evolution of complex life billions of years ago as a waste product from photosynthesis turning sunlight into their energy source. We now know that there's oxygen produced in the deep sea where there's no light whatsoever, right? That is huge, that is massive. So we have to revisit the question of, you know, where could aerobic life have begun? We don't know, that's another question that could be answered. There's more information in the Nature Geoscience publication, I'll link to it in the show notes, but this is a huge discovery. This is massive. You know, this could change the way we see deep sea mining. This could answer that question. Should we be mining the deep sea, especially for nodules, taking those nodules out of habitats where it produces oxygen? And what is that gonna do to the deep sea? How is that gonna affect the processes that work? How are those animals that are not there? If there's mining that happens, what is that gonna do to the deep sea if those animals are absent in those particular areas? How is that gonna affect? We all know the deep sea's connected. We all know the ocean is connected in a variety of ways. We know that some crabs, some fish, some, all these different organisms, when they, the way they even disperse their larvae, right? Or even their eggs before they're even fertilized. Sometimes those eggs will travel, you know, a couple of feet. Other times it'll travel a number of kilometers just to, you know, disperse as much as possible. And so we know the ocean is connected to certain spots, certain organisms will fill and become like a source for other places in terms of the way they disperse their young. And so how is that gonna be affected in the deep sea? Is that gonna be affected? Or are there similar processes for animals in the deep sea that help, you know, populate other areas of the deep sea? We're gonna find that out soon enough, I'm sure. But should we be deep sea mining, knowing this information about dark oxygen? That's we're gonna find out soon enough. I'd love to hear your thoughts though. I'm gonna put a poll in our Spotify account because you can do that. You can, I can actually add a poll. I would love for you to answer that. Go over to Spotify, listen to this, and just answer the poll. Do you think this will affect the way we do deep sea mining? Or if we're gonna do deep sea mining at all, love to hear from you. And this is also gonna be on YouTube. So if you wanna put a comment down below, feel free to do so and answer that question. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. 'Cause this is the beginning of a conversation. I wanna hear your thoughts on this as much as possible. And you can also DM me on Instagram at how to protect the ocean. So many ways to get a hold of me, but that's why we do this podcast. Anyway, thank you so much for joining me on today's episode of The How to Protect the Ocean Podcast. I'm your host, Andrew Lewin. Have a great day. We'll talk to you next time in happy conservation. (upbeat music) (keyboard clicking)
