While the debate around deep-sea mining largely focuses on the still-unknown environmental impact of mineral extraction on ocean ecosystems, the Development Alternatives with Women for a New Era (DAWN) and the Pacific Network on Globalization (PANG) released a policy brief shifting the spotlight to the military aspect of the race to the ocean floor.

Business leaders made a case for BPT rollback during a public hearing held by Sen. Chris Duenas' finance and government operations...

It is believed that, as metals are deposited in the nodules over millions of years, they become electrically charged and are able to split seawater into hydrogen and oxygen in a process called seawater electrolysis, bypassing the need for sunlight to create oxygen.