<
https://www.hawaiipublicradio.org/local-news/2024-07-09/hawaii-seabed-mining-law-international>
"Hawaiʻi has joined California, Oregon and Washington in banning deep-sea
mining in state waters. The new law passed through the state Legislature with
broad support from environmental groups, Native Hawaiian cultural
practitioners, and state agencies like the Department of Health and the Office
of Hawaiian Affairs.
“This is one of those rare issues where everybody seems to have come together,
and that's something that you don't see every day,” said Sen. Chris Lee, who
introduced the local seabed mining measure that Gov. Josh Green signed into law
on Monday.
Although Hawaiʻi is presenting a unified front on seabed mining, its influence
may be limited.
The International Seabed Authority oversees deep-sea mining and is in the
process of developing regulations for the nascent underwater industry. The ISA
is aiming to have those regulations on the books by 2025, which could pave the
way for the first-ever permits for commercial mining of the seafloor.
Since the United States has yet to ratify the High Seas Treaty, it is not a
voting member of the ISA. That’s a problem for Hawaiʻi, said conservationist
and former Hawaiʻi politician Solomon Pili Kahoʻohalahala.
“We are under the occupation of the United States, and we happen to be the
island nation that is in the middle of the largest ocean on this planet Earth,”
said Kahoʻohalahala. “There is no one that is speaking on our behalf, not even
the United States.”"
Via
Fix the News:
<
https://fixthenews.com/goodnews-aids-lgbtq-south-korea-canada-marine-protection/>
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
