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#Kerala fishermen up in arms against #DeepSeaMining proposal off #Kollam coast

March 22, 2025

"The fishermen in Kerala have already launched several protests against the proposed plan to open up the sea to private mining companies as part of the Union Government’s ‘Blue Economy’ initiative.

"All the fishermen’s associations stand united in their protests against this proposal, alleging that it would bring an end to the fisheries sector in the country, not only in the #ArabianSea but also in the #BayOfBengal.

“ 'The mining, according to the scientific report we have, can disturb the seabed and completely destroy fish spawning habitats. It can also release poisonous gases trapped on the #DeepSeaFloor, causing severe #environmental issues,' Kerala Minister for Fisheries, Saji Cherian, told PTI.

"He said that deep-sea mining requires huge investments and heavy machinery, meaning only #multinational #corporations will be involved, making these areas completely inaccessible to poor fishermen.

"The Kerala government, which is strongly opposing this project, passed a resolution in the Assembly urging the Centre to withdraw it.

"The Minister said the proposed site, off the Kollam shore in Kerala in the Arabian Sea, is very rich in marine resources and serves as a lifeline for fishermen from Kerala and other states.

“ 'We have a highly diverse and extensive fish population in this area. The mining will completely wipe out this habitat, severely affecting the livelihood of fishermen in our region,' Saji Cherian said."

#NoJobsOnADeadPlanet #OceansAreLife #MarineLife #DeepSeaMining #NoDeepSeaMining #DarkOxygen #LifeOnEarth #Extinction #Nodules #Greenwashing #CorporateColonialism #CorporatePolluters
#BatteryAlternatives #NoCobaltMining #RecycleCopper #RecycleCobalt #RecycleZinc #Recycle! #Ecocide #PlanetDestroyers #HumanGreed

#NPR: The U.S. takes a step toward allowing #mining on the ocean floor, a fragile #ecosystem

by Julia Simon, April 25, 2025

"President #Trump signed an executive order Thursday aimed at making it easier for companies to mine the deep seafloor, saying it would create 'a robust domestic supply for critical minerals.'

"There is currently no commercial-scale deep-sea mining anywhere in the world. But companies have long eyed the ocean floor as a potential source of metals like nickel, cobalt, manganese and copper, which are used in batteries for electric vehicles and other technologies.

"The world has no rulebook for deep-sea mining. One company is pushing forward anyway

"These metals can be found in potato-sized nodules lying on the ocean floor. Many of the nodules are in the middle of the Pacific ocean, beyond the legal territory of individual countries.

"Thursday's order might circumvent ongoing international negotiations to regulate deep-sea mining.

"Those regions have traditionally been overseen by an international organization, the #InternationalSeabedAuthority (#ISA). The ISA has hosted talks for years to try to hammer out a rulebook to govern a potential seabed mining industry. The U.S. did not ratify the treaty that governs the seabed, and is not a voting member of the ISA, though in the past under previous administrations it has respected the ISA process.

"In his executive order, Trump instructed federal agencies to expedite the process for reviewing and issuing permits for mining on the seafloor in both U.S. and international territory. It will use a U.S. law from 1980, the "#DeepSeabed Hard Mineral Resources Act."

"Scientists and environmental groups condemned the order, arguing that opening the deep seabed for mining could disrupt important marine ecosystems, and damage the fishing industry.

" 'This is being planned on some of the least resilient #ecosystems on the planet,' says Douglas McCauley, professor of ocean science at the University of California Santa Barbara. 'It would have #catastrophic biological consequences.'

"Underwater mining can create plumes of sediment that could suffocate marine life, and degrade the #FoodWebs that fish depend on, McCauley says.

"There are also important questions about whether we actually need to be mining the seabed to get enough of these minerals for technologies like batteries, says Micah Ziegler, assistant professor of energy and chemical systems at Georgia Institute of Technology.

"While a couple of years ago researchers were concerned about the limitations of land-based mining for metals like cobalt and nickel, a variety of alternative #battery chemistries have been developed that might reduce the need for those elements, Ziegler says."

#OceansAreLife #MarineLife #DeepSeaMining #NoDeepSeaMining
#DarkOxygen #LifeOnEarth #Extinction #Nodules #Greenwashing #CorporateColonialism #CorporatePolluters #TrumpSucks #Idiocracy
#BatteryAlternatives #NoCobaltMining #RecycleCopper #RecycleCobalt #RecycleZinc #Recycle! #Ecocide #PlanetDestroyers #HumanGreed #NoJobsOnADeadPlanet

Rice researchers develop innovative #BatteryRecycling method

A research team at #RiceUniversity led by James Tour, the T.T. and W.F. Chao Professor of Chemistry and professor of materials science and nanoengineering, is tackling the environmental issue of efficiently recycling #lithiumIon batteries amid their increasing use.

"The team has pioneered a new method to extract purified active materials from battery waste as detailed in the journal Nature Communications on July 24. Their findings have the potential to facilitate the effective separation and recycling of valuable battery materials at a minimal fee, contributing to a greener production of electric vehicles (#EVs).

"'With the surge in battery use, particularly in EVs, the need for developing sustainable #recycling methods is pressing,' Tour said.

"Conventional recycling techniques typically involve breaking down battery materials into their elemental forms through energy-intensive thermal or chemical processes that are costly and have significant #environmental impacts.

"The team proposed that magnetic properties could facilitate the separation and purification of spent battery materials.

"Their innovation uses a method known as solvent-free flash Joule heating (#FJH). This technique devised by Tour involves passing a current through a moderately resistive material to rapidly heat and transform it into other substances.

"Using FJH, the researchers heated battery waste to 2,500 Kelvin within seconds, creating unique features with magnetic shells and stable core structures. The magnetic separation allowed for efficient purification.

"During the process, the #cobalt-based battery cathodes — typically used in EVs and associated with high financial, environmental and social costs — unexpectedly showed magnetism in the outer spinel cobalt oxide layers, allowing for easy separation.

"The researchers’ approach resulted in a high battery metal recovery yield of 98% with the value of battery structure maintained.

"'Notably, the metal impurities were significantly reduced after separation while preserving the structure and functionality of the materials,' Tour said. “The bulk structure of battery materials remains stable and is ready to be reconstituted into new cathodes.'

"Rice graduate students Weiyin Chen and Jinhang Chen as well as postdoctoral researcher and Rice Academy Junior Fellow Yi Cheng are the co-lead authors of the study."

https://news.rice.edu/news/2024/rice-researchers-develop-innovative-battery-recycling-method

#LithiumBatteries #Recycle #Reuse #NoLithiumMining #NoCobaltMining #BatteryRecycling

#NoCobaltMining

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