Call for ban on seabed mining in Hawai’i

The Honorable Nicole Lowen
Hawai‘i House of Representatives
Hawai‘i State Capitol, Room 436
415 S Beretania St, Honolulu, HI 96813

 

Dear Representatives Lowen, Cochran, Ganaden, Perruso, and Poepoe:

We write to express our thanks and support for your leadership in authoring House Bill 186 to

1) prohibit the mining, extraction, and removal of minerals from the seabed in Hawai‘i’s marine waters; and

2) prohibit the issuance of any permit for or in connection with the development or operation of any facility or infrastructure associated with the mining, extraction, or removal of minerals from the seabed within state marine waters.

Every new research dive to the seafloor reveals amazing wildlife and new discoveries about the role the deep sea plays in the health of our ocean and our lives. Seabed mining directly destroys whole communities of life on the seafloor, leaving behind habitats that may never recover. Mining also creates extremely large and potentially toxic sediment plumes; as well as noise, light, and thermal pollution that disrupt marine habitats. More than 700 ocean scientists have called for a halt to seabed mining citing the risks it poses to ocean health and the well-being of coastal communities.

Hawai’i cannot afford to risk losing our social, cultural, and economic connections to the sea.

The seafloor and ocean underpin Hawai‘i’s cultural heritage, along with its multi-billion dollar tourism and fishing industries. As the extractive industry grows, seabed mining activities pose a large-scale disruption to these important ecosystems. Seabed mining would harm commercially and recreationally important species like tuna/ahi, mahi-mahi, billfish and other species as well as the overall health of our ocean.

The State of California passed a ban on seabed mining in state waters last year in 2022, following Washington’s seabed mining ban in 2021 and Oregon’s in 1991. The undersigned organizations urge Hawai‘i to do the same and ensure passage of HB186 to protect Hawai‘i’s coastal waters.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Koda Daily
Executive Director
Sustainable Ocean Alliance Hawai‘i

Wayne Tanaka
Director
Sierra Club of Hawai‘i

Kahi Picarro
Director
Parley for the Oceans, Hawai‘i

Dyson Chee
Executive Director
Hawai‘i Youth Climate Coalition

Megan Lamson
President
Hawai‘i Wildlife Fund

Denise Antolini
Director
Mālama Pūpūkea-Waimea

Arnie Saiki
Management
Deep Sea Mining Campaign

Sherry Pollack
Co-founder
350Hawai‘i

Alan Burdick & Melodie Aduja
Co-chairs
Environmental Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i

Nina Jensen
Chief Executive Officer
Rev Ocean

Lisa Bishop
President
Friends of Hanauma Bay

Carissa Cabrera
Chief Executive Officer
The Conservationist Collective

Lance Morgan
President
Marine Conservation Institute

Laurel Brier
Chair
Kauai Women’s Caucus

Donna Wong
Executive Director
Hawai‘i’s Thousand Friends

Rafael Bergstrom
Executive Director
Sustainable Coastlines Hawai‘i

Neal Desai
Senior Director of Field Operations, Pacific
National Parks Conservation Association

 Courtney Vail
Director of Strategic Campaigns
Oceanic Preservation Society

Lauren Blickley
Hawai’i Regional Manager
Surfrider Hawai’i

Stan Rowland
CEO; Chairman
Blue Climate Initiative; Tetiaroa Society

Douglas McCauley
Director
Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory

Jeff Boehm
Chief External Relations Officer
The Marine Mammal Center

Bobbi-Jo Dobush
Legal Officer
The Ocean Foundation

John Hocevar
Oceans Campaign Director
Greenpeace USA

Kelvin Passfield
Technical Director
Te Ipukarea Society