President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order to boost the US’ offshore mining capabilities.
The order seeks to unleash the US’s competitiveness in the burgeoning offshore mining industry, which China currently leads.
Offshore or ‘deep-sea’ mining is the extraction of critical minerals from the ocean floor.
Critical minerals are used to produce myriad technological devices in sectors like energy, defense, digital technology, and healthcare.
China is currently the world’s largest producer of processed critical minerals, possessing nearly all of the available processed critical mineral stock.
President Trump’s executive order reflects how the US is seeking to decouple its economy from that of China and secure its own critical minerals supply.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio lauded Trump’s order.
“The United States – not China – will lead the world in responsibly unlocking seabed mineral resources and securing critical mineral supply chains with our partners and allies,” said Secretary Rubio.
The executive order expedites permitting processes for US companies involved in deep sea mining both in areas inside and outside the US’s jurisdiction.
Additionally, the order intends to bolster international cooperation in deep sea mining by tasking the secretaries of Commerce, State, Interior, and Energy with facilitating intergovernmental collaboration in deep sea mining projects.
“Our Nation must take immediate action to accelerate the responsible development of seabed mineral resources, quantify the Nation’s endowment of seabed minerals, reinvigorate American leadership in associated extraction and processing technologies, and ensure secure supply chains for our defense, infrastructure, and energy sectors,” declares the order.
The order also emphasizes that deep sea mining policies must ensure US companies are engaging in “responsible” mining practices.
Some have criticized deep-sea mining as potentially significantly harming the ocean, especially when authorized by countries like China, which have scant environmental oversight over their companies.
Trump’s executive order intends for the US and allies to lead in environmentally responsible deep-sea mining, which could help minimize the environmental risks associated with it.
