Don't let yourself be fooled by Englishism: deep sea mining, i.e. the
extraction of minerals and metals from the seabed, is the new frontier
of extractive capitalism. After having caused the planet to collapse
from a climate point of view due to the excessive use of fossil fuels -
coal, oil and gas - governments and companies are aiming to exploit the
sea. The opportunity is tempting for a production system that is already
transforming even global warming into a business and is aiming for an
ecological transition where only the sources of energy change but not
the hoarding of resources and the colonization of territories.
We know that renewable energies, mainly photovoltaic and wind, require a
considerable amount of so-called critical raw materials: these are those
minerals and metals of considerable strategic importance and, at the
same time, characterized by a high supply risk. We have learned about
some of them: lithium, essential for electric car batteries; cobalt,
contained in smartphones; titanium, widespread in bikes and PCs. We have
known others for some time: from copper to nickel via magnesium. We will
have to deal with still others very soon, I am thinking for example of
rare earths, a group of 17 metals widespread everywhere and coveted
above all by the aerospace and defense sectors. Where to find all these
critical raw materials, 34 according to the latest list from the
European Commission? Substantial earth deposits are known and limited in
the world, especially widespread in China, in the South American
triangle between Brazil, Argentina and Chile and in Australia. So what
to do?
The sea and space remain the other possible scenarios. If the race for
space, and for metals obtainable for example from asteroids, still
appears distant (even if there are already growing positions and
interests), the extraction front has been aiming for the sea for some
time. As the National Research Council explains, "only a small fraction
(25%) of the seabed has been mapped through direct observations and
measurements." So why not start a new season of mineral exploration and
then also allow extraction? This is what the Meloni government proposes.
Aware that the topic is quite delicate, the right in power took a while
to reveal itself. Then in September 2023, speaking at the Risorsa Mare
Forum in Trieste, Giorgia Meloni marked the first change of pace. "One
of the many challenges that await us is the race for the underwater
world and the geological resources of the seabed, a new domain in which
Italy intends to play a leading role" the Prime Minister said on that
occasion. Even without explicitly naming it, therefore, a first partial
opening was glimpsed. Then confirmed to the undersigned by the ministers
Urso (the one with the Made in Italy bullshit, to express his caliber)
and Musumeci (who as former president of the Sicilian region immediately
showed himself ready to sell off the island).
The Italian attempts look towards Norway, which so far is the only state
to have authorized exploration, eager to reach the Arctic to look for
the new relief valve for the mining industry. However, without
considering two Italian specificities that are fundamental. The first is
that the Mediterranean Sea is a particularly delicate semi-closed basin,
already heavily polluted by plastics, naval transits and industrial
activities: the most striking case in this sense is that of the SINs,
the Sites of National Interest, where environmental contamination it has
been recognized by the state itself for more than 25 years and where,
however, right on the sea, pollution extends pervasively. These are
situations that we know very well in Sicily. It is no coincidence that
of the 4 SINs present here, three overlook the sea, namely Gela, Priolo
and Milazzo. The second specificity concerns the fact that, despite
still being little studied, according to scientific projections the
seabed of the Mediterranean Sea appears not only extremely rich in
biodiversity but also poor in deposits. Since Sicily is beautiful and
unfortunate, in the sense that it enjoys all the resources that
capitalism craves, the same is also true for critical raw materials. And
in fact the most promising deposits appear to be around the Aeolian
islands, in what are called seamounts, or underwater mountains.
In any case, the Meloni government still has to deal with the ongoing
discussion on deep sea mining at an international level. Since 1994, the
authority responsible for addressing the issue has been the ISA
(International Seabed Authority), an independent body established under
the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The international
body has the aim of coordinating and controlling all activities related
to the minerals present in the seabed beyond the limits of national
jurisdictions, considered world heritage. For this reason, since 2011
the ISA has been engaged in complex negotiations to adopt a global
regulation. At the moment, exploitation concessions at a global level
are suspended, pending the final vote, expected in 2025 - but the time
limit has already been moved several times. A wide range of companies
are potentially affected by offshore extraction. They range from
STMicroElectronics, which produces semiconductors and has a huge factory
in Catania which is further expanding, to Saipem, specialized in the
design, construction and operation of energy infrastructures and plants,
some of which in Sicily (such as the Argo-Cassiopea gas pipeline in Gela
); from Fincantieri, by far the most important naval-mechanical company
in Italy with a crucial headquarters in Palermo, up to Leonardo and
Stellantis, also with their clutches on the island.
As can be seen, it is a union that brings together the "old" fossil
industry and the "new" renewable industry, as well as the very powerful
military and automotive industries, in a mixture of interests that aims
to perpetuate the only form of activity possible for a predatory
capitalism and grabber, that is, extractivism. What is also worrying is
the possibility of a fake reconversion of the oil industries, which look
to mineral extraction as a potential plan B in the event that public
pressure on their harmful activities were to become increasingly
stronger. A paper published by Fincantieri said this already in 2017, in
which we read that "a parallel between the value chains of deep sea
mining and the oil & gas industry shows a substantial overlap, both in
the exploration and production phases. This suggests that there are
business opportunities for Italian companies working in the oil & gas
sector to provide products and services also in this new industry".
Personally, I have been following the topic of deep sea mining for a
while, because in my opinion it constitutes a real danger. As I write
this piece I am collaborating on a report with Greenpeace, interested in
understanding the position of the government and companies. But
information alone is not enough. We need to spread the word, talk to
interested people, in short create adequate mobilization. Because the
risk is to be found unprepared. At the Fratelli d'Italia convention in
Pescara, where I caught ministers Urso and Musumeci, I saw a political
and business class that behind the ferocious face and bombastic
announcements hides a fucking terror of the industrial decline that
Italy has been undertaking for at least 30 years. They are ready to
swallow even the sea so as not to give up power and privileges. It's up
to us to stop them. Learning, why not, to move the protests and
struggles to the sea too.
Andrea Turco
https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
extraction of minerals and metals from the seabed, is the new frontier
of extractive capitalism. After having caused the planet to collapse
from a climate point of view due to the excessive use of fossil fuels -
coal, oil and gas - governments and companies are aiming to exploit the
sea. The opportunity is tempting for a production system that is already
transforming even global warming into a business and is aiming for an
ecological transition where only the sources of energy change but not
the hoarding of resources and the colonization of territories.
We know that renewable energies, mainly photovoltaic and wind, require a
considerable amount of so-called critical raw materials: these are those
minerals and metals of considerable strategic importance and, at the
same time, characterized by a high supply risk. We have learned about
some of them: lithium, essential for electric car batteries; cobalt,
contained in smartphones; titanium, widespread in bikes and PCs. We have
known others for some time: from copper to nickel via magnesium. We will
have to deal with still others very soon, I am thinking for example of
rare earths, a group of 17 metals widespread everywhere and coveted
above all by the aerospace and defense sectors. Where to find all these
critical raw materials, 34 according to the latest list from the
European Commission? Substantial earth deposits are known and limited in
the world, especially widespread in China, in the South American
triangle between Brazil, Argentina and Chile and in Australia. So what
to do?
The sea and space remain the other possible scenarios. If the race for
space, and for metals obtainable for example from asteroids, still
appears distant (even if there are already growing positions and
interests), the extraction front has been aiming for the sea for some
time. As the National Research Council explains, "only a small fraction
(25%) of the seabed has been mapped through direct observations and
measurements." So why not start a new season of mineral exploration and
then also allow extraction? This is what the Meloni government proposes.
Aware that the topic is quite delicate, the right in power took a while
to reveal itself. Then in September 2023, speaking at the Risorsa Mare
Forum in Trieste, Giorgia Meloni marked the first change of pace. "One
of the many challenges that await us is the race for the underwater
world and the geological resources of the seabed, a new domain in which
Italy intends to play a leading role" the Prime Minister said on that
occasion. Even without explicitly naming it, therefore, a first partial
opening was glimpsed. Then confirmed to the undersigned by the ministers
Urso (the one with the Made in Italy bullshit, to express his caliber)
and Musumeci (who as former president of the Sicilian region immediately
showed himself ready to sell off the island).
The Italian attempts look towards Norway, which so far is the only state
to have authorized exploration, eager to reach the Arctic to look for
the new relief valve for the mining industry. However, without
considering two Italian specificities that are fundamental. The first is
that the Mediterranean Sea is a particularly delicate semi-closed basin,
already heavily polluted by plastics, naval transits and industrial
activities: the most striking case in this sense is that of the SINs,
the Sites of National Interest, where environmental contamination it has
been recognized by the state itself for more than 25 years and where,
however, right on the sea, pollution extends pervasively. These are
situations that we know very well in Sicily. It is no coincidence that
of the 4 SINs present here, three overlook the sea, namely Gela, Priolo
and Milazzo. The second specificity concerns the fact that, despite
still being little studied, according to scientific projections the
seabed of the Mediterranean Sea appears not only extremely rich in
biodiversity but also poor in deposits. Since Sicily is beautiful and
unfortunate, in the sense that it enjoys all the resources that
capitalism craves, the same is also true for critical raw materials. And
in fact the most promising deposits appear to be around the Aeolian
islands, in what are called seamounts, or underwater mountains.
In any case, the Meloni government still has to deal with the ongoing
discussion on deep sea mining at an international level. Since 1994, the
authority responsible for addressing the issue has been the ISA
(International Seabed Authority), an independent body established under
the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The international
body has the aim of coordinating and controlling all activities related
to the minerals present in the seabed beyond the limits of national
jurisdictions, considered world heritage. For this reason, since 2011
the ISA has been engaged in complex negotiations to adopt a global
regulation. At the moment, exploitation concessions at a global level
are suspended, pending the final vote, expected in 2025 - but the time
limit has already been moved several times. A wide range of companies
are potentially affected by offshore extraction. They range from
STMicroElectronics, which produces semiconductors and has a huge factory
in Catania which is further expanding, to Saipem, specialized in the
design, construction and operation of energy infrastructures and plants,
some of which in Sicily (such as the Argo-Cassiopea gas pipeline in Gela
); from Fincantieri, by far the most important naval-mechanical company
in Italy with a crucial headquarters in Palermo, up to Leonardo and
Stellantis, also with their clutches on the island.
As can be seen, it is a union that brings together the "old" fossil
industry and the "new" renewable industry, as well as the very powerful
military and automotive industries, in a mixture of interests that aims
to perpetuate the only form of activity possible for a predatory
capitalism and grabber, that is, extractivism. What is also worrying is
the possibility of a fake reconversion of the oil industries, which look
to mineral extraction as a potential plan B in the event that public
pressure on their harmful activities were to become increasingly
stronger. A paper published by Fincantieri said this already in 2017, in
which we read that "a parallel between the value chains of deep sea
mining and the oil & gas industry shows a substantial overlap, both in
the exploration and production phases. This suggests that there are
business opportunities for Italian companies working in the oil & gas
sector to provide products and services also in this new industry".
Personally, I have been following the topic of deep sea mining for a
while, because in my opinion it constitutes a real danger. As I write
this piece I am collaborating on a report with Greenpeace, interested in
understanding the position of the government and companies. But
information alone is not enough. We need to spread the word, talk to
interested people, in short create adequate mobilization. Because the
risk is to be found unprepared. At the Fratelli d'Italia convention in
Pescara, where I caught ministers Urso and Musumeci, I saw a political
and business class that behind the ferocious face and bombastic
announcements hides a fucking terror of the industrial decline that
Italy has been undertaking for at least 30 years. They are ready to
swallow even the sea so as not to give up power and privileges. It's up
to us to stop them. Learning, why not, to move the protests and
struggles to the sea too.
Andrea Turco
https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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