Posted on 11/21/2024 3:26:25 PM PST by nickcarraway
Japan’s $26bn discovery: A deep-sea jackpot with a deep-seated cost.
In a discovery that’s got economists giddy and environmentalists reeling, Japan has found something very special deep under the Pacific Ocean.
Scientists have uncovered a seabed covered with nodules near Minami-Tori-shima Island worth a staggering $26.29 billion. But while the find promises to turbocharge Japan’s economy for the next decade, critics warn it could sink marine biodiversity into uncharted waters of destruction.
A buried fortune unearthed
The seabed is 5,700 metres down, glistening with manganese nodules – millions of years in the making – packed with cobalt, nickel, copper, and more. A survey by The Nippon Foundation and the University of Tokyo revealed the underwater treasure trove, located some 1,200 miles from Tokyo.
The nodules are estimated to hold 610,000 metric tons of cobalt and 740,000 metric tons of nickel. At today’s market prices – $24,300 per tonne for cobalt and $15,497 for nickel – that adds up to eye-watering amounts of cash.
Cobalt and nickel are critical components in electric vehicle (EV) batteries, jet engines, and chemical processing, making them indispensable in a world hurtling towards greener energy.
Digging deep – but at what cost?
While Japan gears up to mine “three million tonnes annually” from 2025, experts are urging caution. A recent study has cast a dark shadow over the plan, revealing devastating effects on ocean ecosystems from deep-sea mining.
Dr Travis Washburn of the Geological Survey of Japan ran a small-scale mining test and found a 43% drop in fish and shrimp populations just one year later. And that was after only two hours of operation.
“It was actually enough to shift things dramatically,” Washburn said. “The sediment plumes alone are a problem, drifting for hundreds of meters and smothering marine life. And this was just the start.”
The double-edged sword
Supporters argue the project is vital for Japan’s economic security. By tapping into domestic resources, the nation can slash its reliance on imports and build a self-sufficient supply chain for the booming EV industry.
“We expect this discovery to boost Japan’s growth and cement its position as a science-technology leader,” said Yasuhiro Kato, a University of Tokyo professor involved in the project.
But conservationists, like Sophie Benbow of a leading marine charity, warn of irreversible damage. “We’ve barely scratched the surface of what deep-sea species can teach us – from medical breakthroughs to new technologies. Mining risks wiping out these ecosystems before we even understand them,” she told the BBC.
Gold rush or environmental gamble?
With Japan poised to rake in billions of dollars, the world watches as the nation charts a course through uncharted waters. Is this the future of green energy or a death bell for marine life? The stakes couldn’t be higher.
Only time will tell if this $26bn discovery is a blessing or a curse.
Stay tuned for more news.
But will nobody think of the sea urchin? Urchin and orphan are phonetically related.
Don’t these nodules make electricity that turn water into oxygen ?
“ The seabed is 5,700 metres down, glistening with manganese nodules”
Five paragraphs in and the author finally says what he’s talking about.
Japan is paying for their largest military buildup since WWII, they could use this good news.
Wasn’t the U.S. Japan’s military since World War II?
Japan is the most indebted country in the world. They have approximately $9.2 trillions of debt.
This is just a small change comparing to Japan’s debt!
Paging the Glomar Explorer, Howard Hughes’s Manganese recovery ship. (really a spy ship plucking Rusky sub from the deep)
I have, yet another, dumb question.
Isn’t 5,700 meters so deep that you’d need a ship like the Glomar Explorer to reach it?
Cool! I’d like to get a gig as an engineer on this fun.
Japan just doesn’t flaunt it, but they are not disarmed.
List of Top 10 Strongest Militaries of the World 2024
1 United States 0.0699 2,127,500 $831 billion
2 Russia 0.0702 3,570,000 $109.0 billion
3 China 0.0706 3,170,000 $227 billion
4 India 0.1023 5,137,550 $74.0 billion
5 South Korea 0.1416 3,820,000 $44.7 billion
6 United Kingdom 0.1443 1,108,860 $62.8 billion
7 Japan 0.1601 328,150 $53 billion
Not just that! Manganese? Shouldn't that be personganese?!
$26bn discovery?
To put that into perspective, the USA and Europe have gifted Ukraine more than $250 billion since 2020. All that money, printed out of thin air.
And you wonder why we have inflation. /spit
I don’t know. But agree it sounds very deep.
I did look in to this due to this post and this discovery is more than 10 years old.
—”Paging the Glomar Explorer”
Transocean announced in April 2015 that the ship would be scrapped. The ship arrived at the ship breakers at Zhoushan, China, on 5 June 2015
26 billion makes for a successful company in a big country and a successful small country but its not enough to move the needle in a big country like japan
How can they own it 1200 miles away? They don’t show a location?
Totally agree, 26 billion is chump change for Zelensky. Probably his weekly allowance!
Godzilla is not going to like it if they start taking away his manganese.
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