The Norwegian fishing industry slams a Government decision to open up deep-sea mining in the Norwegian Sea despite scientific opposition
The Norwegian Government’s decision to open up waters on the countries continental shelf to mining for minerals has been met with severe criticism from fishing associations across the country.
On Tuesday 20 June, the Norwegian Government announced that it proposes to open up parts of the Norwegian continental shelf for commercial seabed mineral operations. In its announcement it stated that, at the same time, the government will present a strategy that shows how Norway will be a world leader when it comes to fact-and-knowledge-based management of seabed mineral resources. They said that environmental care must be taken care of throughout the value chain and extraction will only be permitted if the industry can demonstrate that it can be done in a sustainable and responsible manner.
At the launch of the proposal Oil and Energy Minister Terje Aasland said, “We need minerals to complete the green shift. Today, the resources are controlled by a few countries, which makes us vulnerable. Seabed minerals can become a source of access to important metals, and no other country has a better basis for being able to lead the way and show the way when it comes to managing such resources in a sustainable and responsible manner. The closure will be important, among other things, for the world’s long-term energy transition.”
The Norwegian government believes it has large resources of mineral on the country’s seabed. They propose that if it turns out that the deposits are profitable and can be extracted in a sustainable way, the seabed mineral industry will be able to contribute to value creation and employment in Norway and help to secure the supply of important metals in the global energy transition. They believe the extraction of such minerals could then become a new and important marine industry for Norway.
On the other side of the divide, Norwegian fishermen feel that the decision to go offshore drilling for minerals was made without input from the fishing industry, which will be seriously affected by the proposals if it turns into reality.
Norwegian Fishermen’s Association (Norges Fiskerlag)
The Norwegian Fishermen’s Association (Norges Fiskerlag) states that their input has been ignored and are highly critical of the government’s plans to open up 281,000 square kilometres in the Norwegian Sea to mining.
The opening proposal from the government is presented less than five months after the impact assessment was consulted and the Association believes this creates major and decisive shortcomings.
The Association asserts that the central research institutes and specialist departments, such as the Institute of Marine Research and the Norwegian Environment Agency, also determined that the impact assessment are so flawed that it was not suitable as a basis for decision-making.
“We have a hard time understanding why the government is in such a hurry to open up marine mining,” says Jan Henrik Sandberg, senior adviser at the Norwegian Fishermen’s Association.
He believes it is central that the proposal must be based on a sound knowledge base.
“The weaknesses and gaps in knowledge that the Norwegian Fishermen’s Association and many others pointed out in the last hearing have not been corrected. The opening therefore does not provide security that respect for the marine environment and the fishing industry will actually be taken care of,” says Sandberg.
In the proposal to open marine mining, the government indicates that it expects a low potential for conflict with the fisheries, which Sandberg says unproven.
“Hopefully that can be correct, but it is not the case that the fisheries within the opened areas are small or insignificant,” points out Jan Henrik Sandberg.
He points out that the annual catch value for Norwegian vessels is between NOK 500 million (€43m/£37m) and NOK 1.6 billion (€138m/£120m) as of today in the area in question. In addition, the government has not considered fisheries agreements with foreign vessels.
“Otherwise, it is not only the extent of today’s fisheries that is decisive. Marine mining can also have a significant impact on spawning areas, spawning success, migration routes and access to food. In this sense, the stocks, and thus also the fisheries, can be affected at quite a distance from the takeout itself,” he adds.
Summing up their stance on the issue, Norges Fiskerlag said:
“The Norwegian Fishermen’s Association is, very critical of the government’s proposal to open an area that is significantly larger than the whole of Great Britain to marine mining.
“In our opinion, the government should adopt a far more knowledge-based approach. Very few of the fisheries organisations’ heavy professional input have been well considered and taken care of, and we have the impression that they are not being taken seriously in this matter.
“The Norwegian Fishermen’s Association now expects the necessary knowledge to be established before any activity is initiated, which could be detrimental to the marine environment and fisheries. Any marine mining in our waters must also be based on the precautionary principle.”
Fiskebåt
Fiskebåt are also very critical of the government allowing mining on the seabed in a situation where we lack knowledge about how such activity affects the marine environment. The say that this decision may also affect the debate on offshore wind.
“There is very little knowledge about how mining on the seabed can affect the ecosystems in the sea. Researchers and various professional circles, both nationally and internationally, have warned against such activity, so we are therefore surprised by the announcement from the government that could open up mining operations,” says Audun Maråk, Managing Director of Fiskebåt.
Maråk refers to the decision from the Labour Party’s national meeting in the spring, where the AUF (the Labour Party’s Youth Organisation) apparently prevailed with its view on mining on the seabed.
“The national meeting specified that it should be based on a knowledge-based approach in which consideration for the environment weighs heavily and should be a leader for the Norwegian seabed mineral industry. And further that the prerequisite for any recovery is that this must be based on precautionary principles, and a cautious approach. With this decision, AUF has been overtaken by the government,” says Maråk.
Maråk believes the Storting’s white paper comes in parallel with plans for a large-scale development of offshore wind, and in that way contributes negatively in terms of the ongoing debate around the coexistence of offshore wind and the fishing industry.
“Mining activity on the seabed is a major intervention, and it is therefore important that you take enough time before you start. Offshore wind also places a great strain on the marine environment, and it is therefore important that these challenges and conclusions are established before starting new plans for mining on the seabed,” says Maråk.
Norwegian Pelagic Association (Pelagisk Forening)
The government recently opened up exploration and possible extraction of minerals on the seabed, despite both the fishing industry, marine scientists and environmental organizations pointing out that we know far too little about how exploration and extraction will affect life on the bottom and in the water column, sates the Association.
“The impact assessment shows that there is a lack of both knowledge and mature technology. It also has consequences for the implementation,” says chairman Kristian Sandtorv who finds it worrying that the government has chosen to open the seas to mining.
The Association states that 27 January 2023 was the deadline for submitting consultation responses to the government’s proposal on the possible opening of the Norwegian continental shelf for commercial exploration and, in the long term, the extraction of seabed minerals.
The Association says that it was strongly opposed to the proposal stating that the area that is proposed to be opened is enormous, there is a great lack of knowledge about its effects and the impact of exploration and extraction is very uncertain.
The Association says the there is great agreement on this across the fishing industry and with marine scientists.