Pacific islands alarmed by Trump-backed push for deep-sea mining
A Pacific island leader says there were “no consultations” before the United States announced swaths of nearby ocean could be auctioned for deep-sea mining exploration, telling Agence France-Presse (AFP) the industry faced strong opposition among his people.
Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands Gov. David Apatang said the idea had caused great unease across the tropical island chain of some 40,000 people.
The United States alarmed its tropical island territories earlier this year, detailing plans to carve up parts of the Pacific Ocean for mining exploration.
Mining companies see enormous wealth in mineral deposits scattered across the seabed, but the fledgling industry has for years been held back by environmental concerns.
An expanse of US maritime territory near American Samoa in the South Pacific could be auctioned as soon as November, according to official documents.
Separate tracts of ocean surrounding Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands in the Western Pacific are also under consideration.
“Some concerns include disruption to food security for the people of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, who rely on the ocean resources for their survival,” Apatang told AFP.
Caught by surprise
Washington initially proposed to explore a 140,000-square-kilometer (50,000-square-mile) block about 200 km east of territory capital Saipan.
But Apatang said he was caught by surprise when the United States announced in March that a similar-sized block to Saipan’s west could be leased as well.
“There have been no consultations with the people of the Northern Mariana Islands,” he said.
Deep-sea mining companies want to scour the ocean’s abyssal plains for mineral deposits and polymetallic nodules laden with nickel, copper, and cobalt.
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in 2025 aimed at “unleashing” these seabed resources, stressing the demand in everything from renewable energy to military applications.
Critics fear deep-sea mining will cause irreversible damage, smothering marine life in plumes of waste and disrupting oceanic migrations with the thrum of heavy machinery.
Crucial source
The Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa all want at least a temporary ban on deep-sea mining in their territorial waters.
But the US territories—which rely on Washington for funding and defense—have little say on what Washington does outside their 5-kilometer (3-mile) maritime boundary.
Guam passed laws this year banning deep-sea mining vessels from calling at its ports, potentially hampering the industry by cutting off a crucial source of fuel and supplies.
Apatang said the Northern Mariana Islands would “consider following suit.”
Lawmaker Aumua Amata, who represents American Samoa in the US House of Representatives, said she worried deep-sea mining could disrupt fisheries providing the vast bulk of the territory’s export earnings.
“I represent our people and I am confident that a majority of American Samoans are opposed,” she told AFP.
Pacific island nations are divided on whether deep-sea mining will deliver economic windfalls, or environmental catastrophe.
Nauru and the Cook Islands are among world leaders in seabed mining exploration, while the likes of Samoa, Fiji, and Palau have called for a moratorium on the industry.
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