Seabed mining sparks environmental concerns

UNDERWATER WONDER: A clown nudibranch and its rose-shaped egg case, both tucked into a sponge, and photographed on a reef offshore from Patea.

IN 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declined Trans Tasman Resources (TTR) request to mine the seabed off the coast of Patea.

The Government is changing regulations around seabed mining in our Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and TTR are coming back for another go.

The beach and the sea are treasures for most coastal Kiwis - some of my favourite memories of childhood are of sailing my P class yacht in and out of the surf at Paekakariki just north of Wellington.

We know our oceans are in bad shape and the thought of someone else coming along and meddling with them sends shudders down my spine.

TTR's mining consent application was declined in 2014 as the EPA was not satisfied the "life-supporting capacity of the environment would be safeguarded or that adverse effects could be avoided, remedied or mitigated".

Or, as one expert witness is reported to have said: "The uncertainty about the uncertainty is uncertain."

One of the factors that probably swayed the EPA was information presented by local doctor Athol Steward, a keen diver and fisherman, that the Australian EPA had put a five-year moratorium on seabed mining because the risks were unknown and too great.

A report published by the World Bank this year recommended that Pacific Island countries "considering deep sea mining ... proceed with a high degree of caution to avoid irreversible damage to the ecosystem, and ensure that appropriate social and environmental safeguards are in place ... not enough was known about the environmental and social impacts of the enterprise and likewise the appropriate fiscal regime and economic benefit to deep sea mining were not yet clearly understood."

The TTR proposal is to mine 50 million tonnes of sand each year, up to 20 metres deep, in a 65 square kilometre area off the coast from Patea. Ninety per cent of the sand will be returned to the seabed creating a large sediment plume for an estimated 20 years.
It is feared that this sediment will block sunlight and smother life on the seafloor over an unknown area, possibly as far as Kapiti Island.

It is possible this will have adverse effects on fishing and diving along our coast and affect areas such as the beautiful reefs off the coast of Patea featured in the Chronicle last weekend.

Worryingly, this is a test case. More mines are planned up and down the west coast of New Zealand.

It is understood the product would be processed on a ship and transported directly to overseas markets. There is no guarantee that jobs will go to Kiwis or that they will spend money locally.

We must balance the potential jobs with the risk to tourism, New Zealand's second-biggest industry, should this be an environmental disaster.

In the Hauraki Gulf, seabed mining is believed to be causing coastal erosion and reducing bird habitat and fish stocks. The Auckland Regional Council attempted to have the mining stopped because of this but was unsuccessful as it was not able to prove causality.

I don't trust a company to do the right thing deep under our precious sea - especially as the Government is actively weakening on environmental protection. Our planet is already littered with too many environmental disasters.

At 7.30pm on Thursday, September 29, there will be a public meeting about the TTR proposal at the Stellar bar on the corner of Taupo Quay and Victoria Avenue which will be addressed by Phil McCabe from Kiwis Against Seabed Mining (KASM).

Please come along, listen and have your say. We stopped TTR last time - we can do it again.

In a recent letter to the Chronicle editor, a request was made that columnists declare their political affiliations. I am happy to announce that I am an active member of the Green Party of Aotearoa, and I encourage all who care about the environment and want a fairer society to join us.

■Dr Chris Cresswell is a local health professional. He is a member of the Green Party of Aoteoroa and a financial supporter of Kiwis Against Seabed Mining.