Is the new race for rare metals has begun in deep sea?
Whatever the country, its ruling class is delighted to add new territories to its ownership. It is possible that the desire to occupy new territories is eternal in man. Now this desire is stirring man to go to a new area - deep sea. The reason is that there are huge reserves of precious and rare metals like gold, silver, copper, zinc, cobalt etc.
Deep sea refers to the area of sea that is at least 18000 meters (5905 feet) below sea level. The sun's rays do not reach this area, so there is darkness. In the past, scientists thought that there would be no life in the deep sea, but when the submarine was invented to go to the deep sea in the twentieth century, it changed the way of thinking. It was revealed that in the deep sea, colorful aquatic animals breathe and show the colors of God Almighty.
For a long time, scientists have been researching deep-sea creatures, but now the desire for resources is driving developed countries to move to the most difficult terrain in the world. The point is, rare metals can be mined in the deep sea. Clearly, the wheel of the global economy today is moving with the help of metals. If metals were eliminated from the planet, then hundreds of everyday items would cease to be manufactured.
The United Nations has set up the International Seabed Authority, a body that oversees mining and other deep-sea mining. All member states of the United Nations are bound by the rules and regulations of this body. If a country wants to mine in the deep sea outside its "exclusive economic zone" (370 km from the coast), the above authority issues a license to it.
By law, a country can establish two deep-sea mines outside its exclusive economic zone. But one mine will have to be handed over to the International Sea Bed Authority for ten to twenty years. Because of the abundance of minerals found in the mines from the very beginning, many industrialized nations have tightened the authority requirement and refused to recognize it for many years.
The deep sea covers "60%" of the Earth's surface. So far, only 5% of this vast area has been searched, but now developed and rich countries want to know the secrets of the deep sea so that they can exploit the trillions of dollars of minerals hidden there. According to experts, there are huge deposits of copper, nickel and cobalt in the deep sea. These metals are used to make new inventions such as memory chips, LEDs and batteries. Then the presence of rare metals in the deep seas also tempts the human heart. According to one report, tellurium reserves in the Pacific Ocean alone are "22 times" greater than Earth's reserves. This rare metal is used to make solar panels.
But deep sea mining is not a child's play. There the water pressure is "five hundred times" higher than the surface water. Therefore, special equipment is required for mining in such a high pressure area. Only rich and developed countries like USA, UK, France, China etc. can afford this costly mining process, where most of the metals in the world are used to make various products.
After the utility of the deep sea, in the future, a tug-of-war between the world powers for the sake of this region may also start. Like Russia, the United States and other Western nations are racing to raise their own flag at the poles. Every country, especially the North Pole, wants to make its mark. As in the case of the South China Sea, the danger of a US-China confrontation is growing.
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