No. 90% of global fishing activities are carried out within Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) and Extended Continental Shelf (ECS). Most deep sea mining exploration is in areas beyond national jurisdiction (‘area’), although the Cook Islands and India will have deep sea mining within their EEZ. Local sediment disturbance has been shown not to rise more than a few meters, many meters away from phytoplankton (food for fish), which needs light for photosynthesis. Impossible Metals has no riser system with a discharge plume, so this will not impact phytoplankton photosynthesis.
See more details in the ISA Fact-check 2024/2 – Status of fishing activities in the Area.
