Researchers from the Ocean Systems department research a wide range of subjects related to deep sea mining; from the deep sea dust plumes of mining activities to deeps sea food webs. The deep sea is not owned by nations but the collective heritage of humankind. That is why the Internation Seabed Authority, mandated by the United Nations tries to regulate the way we use the deep sea.

The efforts of researchers are all meant to better understand the deep sea and to inform policy makers about different subjects of the deep sea.

 

There are major gaps in knowlegde about deep sea ecosystems and the effects of mining equipment on the deep sea environment. Read more

Henko the Stigter researches the effects of mining equipment on the deep sea environment. Read more

Tanja Stratmann researches the deep sea food web and how important the metal rich notules are to it. Read more

Sabine Gollner is interested to find out if the removal of metal rich nodules can be replaced by an alternative. Read more

Listen to the podcast of Gert-Jan Reichart about the wonders of the deep sea and NIOZ deep sea mining research.