There is still not enough known about the seafloor to decide if deep sea mining can start in the Cook Islands, an ocean scientist with the government authority in charge of seabed minerals says.
The Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) returned last week from a 21-day deep-sea research expedition on board the United States exploration vessel EV Nautilus.
The trip was also funded by the United States and supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
High-resolution imagery and data were collected in a bid to better understand what lives on the seafloor.
SBMA knowledge management officer Dr John Parianos said the findings would guide decisions about seabed mining.
"One day someone will have to make a decision about what to do and it's clear today we don't know enough to make a decision," Parianos said.
On its return, EV Nautilus was confronted by a group of kayakers holding signs that read: "Don't mine the moana".
One of the protesters, Louisa Castledine told RNZ Pacific she is conscious both NOAA and Nautilus had a reputation for being "environmentally friendly" but is concerned about research being "weaponised".
"This research is being used to help enable and guide decision making towards deep-sea mining," Castledine said who is the spokesperson for Ocean Ancestors.
"It's the guise in which this research is being utilised, and it's who sent them is the challenge, because who sent them is quite clear on their intent in mining.
Cook Islands activists confront the EV Nautilus upon its return to Rarotonga, holding banners reading 'Don't Mine The Moana.' Photo: Supplied / Greenpeace
In August, the US and the Cook Islands agreed to work closer in the area of seabed minerals to "advance scientific research and the responsible development of seabed mineral resources".
It came off the back of the Cook Islands signing a five-year agreement with China to cooperate in exploring and researching seabed minerals.
In 2023, the first ever high resolution Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) footage was obtained for the nodule fields at the bottom of the Cook Islands seafloor. A ROV is a scientific/work platform that is lowered from a boat all the way to the seabed. There is no-one on board, which makes them very safe and simpler to operate, according to SBMA. Photo: Screengrab/YouTube/Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority
Jocelyn Trainer, a geopolitical analyst with Terra Global Insights, said both countries are interested in the metals to enhance military capabilities but it's not the primary market.
"Volumes are greater for other industries such as the renewable energy sectors and in China there's huge demand for electric vehicles."
Trainer said China is ahead of the US in obtaining critical minerals through land mining and mineral processing.
"The US is seeming to choose to start with the supply side of things, get the minerals, and then perhaps work up the knowledge of production and refining."
Castledine said the region is in the middle of a "geopolitical storm" with the US and China vying for control over deep-sea minerals.
"The USA's building their military might within the Pacific and this is one of those ways in which their reach is moving more into the Pacific and more specifically into Cook Islands waters."
The Nautilus expedition focused on discovery and the chance to test new deep-sea technology.
Expedition lead Renato Kane said bad weather threatened the mission, however it cleared up in time to send their ROVs down.
"We've had six really successful dives to the sea floor. We're diving these vehicles down to over 5000 meters depth and the length of these dives were on average, about 30 hours each. So we've got a lot of high definition video footage for scientific observation on the sea floor."
Central to the expedition's success was the testing of a new, ultra-high-resolution camera, the MxD SeaCam, designed for deep-sea research at depths of up to 7000 metres.
The camera combines a compact broadcast camera with custom-built titanium housing to capture 4K images with remarkable clarity.
A large Corallimorpharia. Although it looks like an anemone, there are closely related to corals. Photo: Supplied / Ocean Exploration Trust
Dr John Parianos said it is some of the best footage ever recorded several kilometres below the surface.
He said footage would help create the Cook Islands first public catalogue of deep-sea life.
"We've benefited from probably the highest resolution images ever taken at these depths in the whole world ever.
"We need to make a catalogue of the types of life in the Cook Islands seabed so that researchers in the future can reference it. Having such high-quality images means that the catalogue will be even better quality than what exists internationally today."
Tanga Morris, who was responsible for logging data of both biological and geological discoveries on the expedition, said she was in awe of the various life forms they observed.
"One of the main ones that's quite dominant down in the deep sea would be deep-sea sponges. We've seen them in different species, morphotypes, and sizes, even a whole garden of them."
A glass sponge from class Hexactinellida on a stalked anemone. Photo: Supplied / Ocean Exploration Trust
Other creatures found were sea stars, anemones, octopi and eels - some of which have possibly never been seen before.
"A few people have asked questions like, 'have you guys spotted any unidentified species?' And I think we have come across a few, but then it will take a while to really be sure. But if so, what a great milestone it is for us to acknowledge that within our Cook Island waters."
An unknown species of Casper octopus. Photo: Supplied / Ocean Exploration Trust
Dr Antony Vavia, a senior research fellow at Te Puna Vai Marama, the Cook Islands Centre for Research, said the opportunity to go onboard and study deep-sea organisms firsthand was an eye-opening experience.
"Everything that I've seen down there has been a bit of a wow for me, [I'm] just amazed at how much life is down there. I was talking to my former supervisor, and he described us as the astronauts of the sea."
A notable feature of the EV Nautilus was its 24/7 online livestream.
He said people from around the world tuned in during dives to see the deep-sea discoveries for themselves.
"Being able to show what our ROV - what is ROV, the little Hercules, is seeing in real time, and so having the wholesome thought that we're not on this exploration journey alone, but the fact that we can broadcast it to anyone that is interested and invested in learning more about our deep sea environments is incredibly rewarding, because you feel like you're pulling in others to be a part of this discovery."
Vavia who is also a lecturer at the Auckland University of Technology, said many schools and university groups got involved, broadcasting the deep-sea right into their classrooms.
"The opportunities to reach out to schools from a primary school level all the way up to university has been a great opportunity to showcase the science that we're doing here, and hopefully to inspire younger generations and those that are already in the pursuit of careers in marine science or doing work on board research vessels such as the EV Nautilus."
The EV Nautilus crew said this element of the voyage helps to answer the public's questions on what life is found on the seabed.
A brisingid sea star resting on a rock. Photo: Supplied / Ocean Exploration Trust
Crew member and journalist Madison Dapcevich said they hope their passion inspires future scientists.
"Something that's really great about Nautilus is we do have this like childlike wonder. We do get really excited about sponges, which most people are not that excited about. And then it's also a great pathway for early career professionals. So we do have an internship and fellowship program, and those applications are open right now through the end of the year."
The teams findings that will form their first public catalogue of deep-sea life will be a foundation for future research and one day, the difficult decisions about what lies beneath.
