In a move that has raised serious environmental concerns, President Trump signed an executive order to accelerate the approval process for U.S.-affiliated companies seeking to mine the deep seabed in both U.S. and international waters. The decision is particularly striking given that the United States is not a member of the International Seabed Authority (ISA), the global body tasked with regulating deep-sea mining activities beyond national jurisdictions.
The executive order directs U.S. agencies to fast-track permits that would enable the commercial extraction of minerals such as cobalt, nickel, and manganese from deep-ocean environments—some of the most remote and least understood ecosystems on the planet.
While the economic and strategic motivations behind this move are evident, it is difficult not to feel disappointment at the potential risks to fragile deep-sea habitats. Many of the species found in these regions, including cold-water corals, glass sponges, and xenophyophores, grow slowly and exist nowhere else on Earth.
The order invokes authority under the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act, passed by Congress in 1980 after the U.S. declined to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It also streamlines permitting under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act for activities within U.S. jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, the ISA has been working for years to develop an international “mining code” to ensure that any future exploitation of the deep seabed is governed by environmental safeguards and scientific oversight. Despite ongoing disagreements, recent ISA negotiations have underscored the growing global momentum behind a moratorium on deep-sea mining until stronger protections are in place—an approach now supported by more than 30 countries.
By moving forward unilaterally, the executive order sidesteps international consensus and undermines efforts to develop a shared, science-based framework for managing deep-sea resources responsibly. It’s a deeply concerning development at a time when cooperation and caution are more crucial than ever.
Urge President Trump to safeguard our oceans and marine life by revoking the executive order that accelerates destructive deep-sea mining HERE!
