SOPAC (Secretariat of the Pacific Community’s Applied Geoscience and Technology Division) has been organizing workshops in deep sea mining in the Pacific Island region.
According to Radio New Zaeland Internation, the workshop will prepare the mentioned communities for seabed mining.
SOPAC’s director, Russell Howorth, mentioned that the regional governments have to establish regulatory frameworks for the emerging seabed mining industry.
However, the exact reason for the workshops is still unknown.
Phil McCabe from the group Kiwis Against Seabed Mining stated: “I think they’re setting up a framework to facilitate the sell-off of the resources that are in the oceans. They’re setting up that framework before people are even aware of what they’re doing.”
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Subsea World News Staff , August 20, 2012; Image: Nautilus Minerals