New Zealand foreign affairs minister Winston Peters and the cross party political delegation stand with students from Niue High School.
Photo: RNZ Pacific / Caleb Fotheringham
New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters says mining is critical to transition away from fossil fuels but the call for a moratorium in international waters by the previous government still stands.
Peters who is also the foreign affairs minister made the comments after visiting Nauru – a nation pushing alongside mining business The Metals Company for deep seabed mining in the high seas.
“If you want batteries if you want to change the economy then you are not going to get that by just dreaming about it and talking about it and waving your hands around,” Peters told RNZ Pacific.
“What is required here is that those countries that are talking about the green future and the transition to the green future must understand that we cannot get there and make anything but a forlorn hope unless we are engaged in extraction.”
In October 2022, then-Labour government said it would back a “conditional moratorium on deep sea mining in areas beyond national jurisdiction until strong environmental rules can be agreed and backed up by robust science”.
When asked if the call still stands Peters said, “until you pull the signposts down the signpost stands up”.
He said he wanted a more rational discussion on deep sea mining and not “heart-centred virtue signalling”.
Nauru is leading the charge for deep sea mining in international waters.
Photo: RNZ Pacific / Caleb Fotheringham
He said Nauru first wanted an international code before it starts mining.
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is currently meeting in Kingston Jamaica to continue discussing deep sea mining regulations in the high seas.
A big discussion point during the July meeting last year was the two-year rule – a provision under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that once triggered means if regulations are not adopted within two years mining licenses could be granted under whatever rules exist.
Nauru triggered the rule in 2021 that lapsed on 9 July 2023.
In the meantime there has been a growing list of countries calling for at least some sort of pause on deep sea mining now making up about 27 nations.
Environmental group Greenpeace said mining companies like The Metals Company were desperately pushing for the quick adoption of regulations.
“Pushing for regulations is like they are telling us ‘we know we will destroy the last pristine ecosystem of earth but we will do it by the book’,” campaigner Louisa Casson who is attending Jamaica meeting said.
The group said both the Pacific and Aotearoa were on the frontline of the campaign against seabed mining.
Greenpeace Aotearoa deep sea mining campaigner Juressa Lee said generations of indigenous people have endured extractive colonial industries that have caused biodiversity loss accelerated the climate crisis and increased inequity and human rights breaches.
“The attempt to mine the seabed [in New Zealand] and The Metals Company’s plans for the wider Pacific is colonisation and extractivism in action and we must resist.”
Last week the US state of Hawaii also banned deep sea mining after it was signed into law by Governor Josh Green.
The new legislation Hawaii Seabed Mining Prevention Act prohibits the extraction and removal of minerals in state waters and bans issuing permits associated with seabed mining activity.
The Pacific has mixed opinions on the issue with the Cook Islands in an exploration phase in its nations waters.
Premier of Niue Dalton Tagelagi meets with New Zealand foreign affairs minister Winston Peters.
Photo: Ben McKay
Niue Premier Dalton Tagelagi said there will never be deep sea mining in the island’s waters for as long as he was in power.
“If you are talking about neighbours like the Cook Islands and others that is their business.”
New Zealand foreign affairs minister Winston Peters and the cross party political delegation stand with students from Niue High School.
Photo: RNZ Pacific / Caleb Fotheringham
New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters says mining is critical to transition away from fossil fuels but the call for a moratorium in international waters by the previous government still stands.
Peters who is also the foreign affairs minister made the comments after visiting Nauru – a nation pushing alongside mining business The Metals Company for deep seabed mining in the high seas.
“If you want batteries if you want to change the economy then you are not going to get that by just dreaming about it and talking about it and waving your hands around,” Peters told RNZ Pacific.
“What is required here is that those countries that are talking about the green future and the transition to the green future must understand that we cannot get there and make anything but a forlorn hope unless we are engaged in extraction.”
In October 2022, then-Labour government said it would back a “conditional moratorium on deep sea mining in areas beyond national jurisdiction until strong environmental rules can be agreed and backed up by robust science”.
When asked if the call still stands Peters said, “until you pull the signposts down the signpost stands up”.
He said he wanted a more rational discussion on deep sea mining and not “heart-centred virtue signalling”.
Nauru is leading the charge for deep sea mining in international waters.
Photo: RNZ Pacific / Caleb Fotheringham
He said Nauru first wanted an international code before it starts mining.
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is currently meeting in Kingston Jamaica to continue discussing deep sea mining regulations in the high seas.
A big discussion point during the July meeting last year was the two-year rule – a provision under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) that once triggered means if regulations are not adopted within two years mining licenses could be granted under whatever rules exist.
Nauru triggered the rule in 2021 that lapsed on 9 July 2023.
In the meantime there has been a growing list of countries calling for at least some sort of pause on deep sea mining now making up about 27 nations.
Environmental group Greenpeace said mining companies like The Metals Company were desperately pushing for the quick adoption of regulations.
“Pushing for regulations is like they are telling us ‘we know we will destroy the last pristine ecosystem of earth but we will do it by the book’,” campaigner Louisa Casson who is attending Jamaica meeting said.
The group said both the Pacific and Aotearoa were on the frontline of the campaign against seabed mining.
Greenpeace Aotearoa deep sea mining campaigner Juressa Lee said generations of indigenous people have endured extractive colonial industries that have caused biodiversity loss accelerated the climate crisis and increased inequity and human rights breaches.
“The attempt to mine the seabed [in New Zealand] and The Metals Company’s plans for the wider Pacific is colonisation and extractivism in action and we must resist.”
Last week the US state of Hawaii also banned deep sea mining after it was signed into law by Governor Josh Green.
The new legislation Hawaii Seabed Mining Prevention Act prohibits the extraction and removal of minerals in state waters and bans issuing permits associated with seabed mining activity.
The Pacific has mixed opinions on the issue with the Cook Islands in an exploration phase in its nations waters.
Premier of Niue Dalton Tagelagi meets with New Zealand foreign affairs minister Winston Peters.
Photo: Ben McKay
Niue Premier Dalton Tagelagi said there will never be deep sea mining in the island’s waters for as long as he was in power.
“If you are talking about neighbours like the Cook Islands and others that is their business.”
New Zealand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister, Winston Peters, emphasized the necessity of mining for transitioning away from fossil fuels, despite maintaining the previous government’s call for a moratorium on deep sea mining in international waters. Peters made these remarks following his visit to Nauru, which, along with The Metals Company, is pushing for deep seabed mining regulations. Peters urged for a rational debate on the issue, dismissing what he termed as “heart-centred virtue signalling.”
The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is currently meeting to discuss deep sea mining regulations, with significant focus on the “two-year rule” that could allow mining licenses to be granted under existing rules if regulations are not adopted within two years. Nauru triggered this rule in 2021, and it lapsed in July 2023.
Environmental groups, such as Greenpeace, oppose deep sea mining, citing potential environmental destruction and framing it as an extension of colonial extractivism. Recently, Hawaii banned deep sea mining, reflecting growing resistance against these activities. The Pacific region is divided on the issue, with the Cook Islands exploring seabed mining while Niue’s Premier, Dalton Tagelagi, vowed to ban it in his nation’s waters.