Seabed mining project a ‘great argument’ for fast-tracking

The Mafuta diamond mining vessel, operated by Debmarine Namibia, a joint venture between De Beers and the Namibian government, uses a 'crawler' device, also known as the 'Big Green Machine' to trawl the seabed for diamonds in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Namibia, on Friday, June 16, 2017. The world's biggest diamond producer has spent $157 million on a state-of-the-art exploration vessel that will scour 6,000 square kilometers (2,300 square miles) of ocean floor for gems, an area about 65 percent bigger than Long Island. Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg via Getty Images