White House aides say the initiative could see US operations scoop up more than a billion metric tons of mineral-rich deep-sea nodules, and pump hundreds of billions of dollars into the American economy.
Since the 1990s, the group has sought to set ground rules for the burgeoning industry's extraction efforts in international waters.
Instead, the Trump administration is “relying on an obscure 1980 law that empowers the federal government to issue seabed mining permits in international waters,“ the New York Times reported.
Under the order, the secretary of commerce has 60 days to “expedite the process for reviewing and issuing seabed mineral exploration licenses and commercial recovery permits in areas beyond national jurisdiction.”
Commercial deep-sea mining remains in its infancy, but with a global race underway for rare earth minerals -- and the industry dominated by China -- Washington appears set on expanding its collection capacity to benefit its defense, advanced manufacturing and energy industries.
“Fast-tracking deep-sea mining is an environmental disaster in the making,“ Emily Jeffers, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a statement.
The boosted deep-sea mining policy is aimed in part at “strengthening partnerships with allies and industry to counter China’s growing influence over seabed mineral resources,“ the White House said.
Last week the American firm Impossible Metals said it had asked US officials to “commence a leasing process” in a parcel of the Pacific Ocean surrounding far-flung US territory American Samoa.
Key seabed resources include polymetallic nodules, potato-sized pebbles found at depths of 13,000 to 20,000 feet (4,000 to 6,000 meters) that contain manganese, iron, cobalt, copper and nickel.
Canada-based deep-sea mining frontrunner The Metals Company recently stunned industry observers with an attempt to sideline the ISA.
“By building on decades of domestic innovation and regulatory groundwork, this action reasserts America’s role in securiting critical seabed resources and ensures the US is not left behind in a strategic arena increasingly influenced by China,“ Barron said in a statement.
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