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https://theconversation.com/continental-drift-why-the-need-for-critical-minerals-might-change-the-way-we-define-earths-zones-229498>
"Continents and oceans have scientific definitions that underpin international
law. The idea of dividing the world into geographical zones is ancient.
Sovereignty and influence over natural resources is at the heart of most global
divisions.
A peaceful transition away from fossil fuels will require new global agreements
on how to manage mineral resources in the deep ocean as well as those
associated with continents. Technology and modern global politics are creating
new challenges.
Scientific, cultural and legal definitions of continental and oceanic regions
continue to evolve. During the past decade, we surveyed, sampled and defined
the hidden continent of Zealandia.
Intense global media coverage of our work revealed deep-seated arguments about
how we define continents and govern the ocean.
This is understandable, given knowledge about the Earth’s tectonic plates was
formed during a period when we also discovered fossil fuel reserves offshore
from continental shelves.
Most technologies developed last century depend on fossil fuels. Together with
fishing interests, this drove a political desire to define nations’ sovereignty
over submarine continental extensions.
But the transition to renewable energy is now pushing in a new direction.
Critical minerals such as nickel, copper, cobalt and rare earth elements will
become more sought after than oil in the coming decades.
These can all be found in large quantities in the deep ocean, far from
continental shelves. Offshore reserves may be much larger than those found
onshore. But there is currently no agreed framework for sovereignty over the
deep ocean.
As the ocean covers 70% of our planet, we need a workable agreement on its
custodianship. "
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
