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Leader of International Seabed Mining Agency Admonished by Diplomats [1]

['Eric Lipton']

Date: 2023-03-19

Michael Lodge, the head of the United Nations-affiliated agency with jurisdiction over international ocean waters, has pushed diplomats to accelerate the start of industrial-scale mining at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, members of the International Seabed Authority’s governing council said in interviews.

The criticism of Mr. Lodge, who has served as secretary general of the authority since 2016, comes as the diplomats struggle to decide how to respond when the authority receives an application for commercial seabed mining in international waters, which is expected to happen later this year.

It would be the first such request fielded by the 28-year-old authority, and the first time in history that an entity sought permission to mine the bottom of an ocean at an industrial scale. The authority is still writing regulations that would govern the process.

Diplomats from Germany, Costa Rica and elsewhere say that they believe Mr. Lodge, who is supposed to be a neutral facilitator, has stepped out of line by resisting efforts by some council members that could slow approval of the first mining proposal.

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[1] Url: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/19/us/politics/seabed-mining-metals-united-nations.html

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