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The Assembly meeting has now concluded. The two outstanding issues of importance relating to a General Policy on the Environment and a long overdue legal institutional review ended as follows:
Weeks after governments promised bold action to protect the ocean at the UN Ocean Conference in Nice (June 2025), the International Seabed Authority (ISA) Council and Assembly meetings have concluded with no moratorium on deep-sea mining and a widening gap between promises and performance. Despite vocal leadership from some States, which stood against efforts to rush the exploitation of the deep sea in the negotiations, many governments failed to meet the moment in Kingston, squandering a critical opportunity for ocean protection at a time of mounting ecological crisis. The DSCC is urging all governments to reflect on the political and moral costs of inaction and stand firm for a moratorium.
The ISA Council Meeting concluded without a decision to adopt a mining code and has previously reinforced that mining should not start without such regulations being in place. It also initiated an investigation into the actions of The Metals Company subsidiaries with respect to the application for deep-seabed mining under the United States.
The upcoming Part II of the 30th Session of the International Seabed Authority (7 – 25 July) will be the next critical crossroads for the deep ocean and the future of ocean governance.
At the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, the deep sea shifted from the margins to the heart of global ocean policy. This fragile and vital part of our planet, the largest living space on Earth, is finally receiving the urgent attention it deserves.
The 3rd UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) concluded today in Nice, France, with the deep sea placed firmly at the heart of international ocean governance. From opening remarks to final declarations, the message was clear: protecting life below water means protecting the deep.
Any attempts to commence commercial deep-sea mining outside of or ahead of an agreed regulatory framework adopted by the International Seabed Authority (ISA) is referred to as unilateral deep-sea mining.
The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition and partners, have shared an open letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres urging him to publicly support a global moratorium or precautionary pause on deep-sea mining in order to safeguard one of Earth's last great frontiers: the deep ocean.
The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC) urges governments to call for an immediate global moratorium on deep-sea mining to send an urgent political signal defending the ocean, multilateralism, and UNCLOS, following today's announcement by The Metals Company (TMC) USA of its application to mine the international seabed under U.S. domestic law.
The Deep Sea Conservation Coalition (DSCC) calls on global governments to join the growing movement for a moratorium on deep-sea mining. Governments must act now to protect the future of our ocean by supporting equitable, science-based, responsible ocean governance instead of corporate exploitation.