SADSTIA is a member of the Safeguard our Seabed Coalition
The Safeguard our Seabed Coalition believes that a moratorium on bulk marine sediment mining should be established until, at a minimum:
- appropriate impact studies have been conducted
- a strategic environmental assessment has been conducted so that the knock-on effects of marine sediment mining on established and renewable industries, such as fisheries and tourism, are known.
SADSTIA is joined in the Safeguard our Seabed Coalition by the following organisations:
Scientific and legal arguments against bulk marine sediment mining
There is limited knowledge and unanswered questions related to several aspects of bulk marine sediment mining. In response to this lack of available knowledge the Safeguard our Seabed Coalition has commissioned a number of scientific studies to inform decision-makers and provide a tool for rational decision-making and policy around marine phosphate mining in South Africa.