Deep-Sea Mining Poses Threat to Marine Biodiversity, Study Reveals

Fri Dec 05 2025 12:35:13 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

A recent study highlights the substantial impact of deep-sea mining on seabed life, revealing a 37% decline in animal populations in affected areas compared to untouched regions.

Research conducted as part of the largest study on deep-sea mining shows that machines involved in mineral extraction are significantly damaging marine life, reducing the number of animals in affected areas by 37%. This study emphasizes the need for a careful approach to deep-sea mining, as it could threaten biodiversity before we fully understand the richness of ocean ecosystems.

Machines mining minerals in the deep ocean have been found to cause significant damage to life on the seabed, scientists carrying out the largest study of its kind say.

They found that the number of animals found in the tracks of the vehicles was reduced by 37% compared to untouched areas.

The researchers found more than 4,000 animals, 90% of which were new species, living on the seafloor in a remote area of the Pacific Ocean.

Vast amounts of critical minerals needed for green technologies could be locked in the deep ocean, but deep sea mining in international waters is very controversial and currently not permitted until more is known about the environmental impacts.

The research by scientists at the Natural History Museum in London, the UK National Oceanography Centre and the University of Gothenburg was conducted at the request of deep sea mining company The Metals Company.

The scientists said their work was independent and that the company was able to view the results before publication but was not allowed to alter them.

The team compared biodiversity two years before and two months after the test mining that drove machines for 80km on the seafloor.

They looked specifically at animals 0.3mm – 2cm in size, such as worms, sea spiders, snails and clams.

In the tracks of the vehicle, the number of animals fell by 37% and the diversity of species by 32%.

The machine removes about the top five centimetres of sediment. That's where most of the animals live. So obviously, if you're removing the sediment, you're removing the animals in it too, lead author Eva Stewart, PhD student at the Natural History Museum and the University of Southampton, told BBC News.

Even if animals are not killed by the machine, pollution from mining operations could slowly threaten some less resilient species.

Some fear that before we have the chance to explore the full nature of life in the undiscovered deep ocean, it could be endangered. Oceans play a critical role in regulating our planet and are already at severe risk from rising temperatures.

The International Seabed Authority has not yet approved commercial mining although it has issued 31 licences for exploration. A total of 37 countries are backing a temporary ban on mining.

The findings are published in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution.