Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 14, Number 8, 1 August 1997 — Ocean mining: A threat to Hawaiʻi? [ARTICLE]

Ocean mining: A threat to Hawaiʻi?

I want to let all Hawaiians know about a threat to our oeean and life as we know it. This threat is the oeean mining projects involving China, Korea, and the United Nations Office of the Law of the Sea. Two permits have been issued to allow manganese nodule mining in international waters that are nautically close to Hawai'i. The Chinese received a permit allotting them 300,000 square kilometers of oeean bed that is located 500 nautical miles South East of the Big Island. (Half of this oeean territory will be surrendered to the Office of the Law of the Sea.) The Chinese are working on machinery for underwater mining and are slated to begin the project after the year 2,000. Korea's permitted area is 1,000 nauheal south of the Big Island. According to Pierre Flamont of UH Mānoa, who researches oeean drift/current, the area that the Chinese intend to mine is part of an oeean current system. This current will carry sediment from the project to the Big Island of Hawai'i within six to nine months after the project has

begun, and will continue as long as the mining project. Even though this project is in international waters, outside of Hawaiian jurisdiction, it will impact Hawai'i. Other concerns are raised about the migratory path/patterns of ahi and whales, etc. More research needs to be done to determine what could happen if the mining project goes through. Hawai'i and its surrounding waters are not really separated by the international boundary lines but are part of a whole aquatic ecosystem. Hawaiians and the sea-going peoples navigated the "oeean." The oeean is an immortal gift from God! To harm a part of her is to haim us all. I urge all Hawaiians to contact representatives to avert this threat to Hawai'i. Oeean mining has never been done before on a large scale and no one knows what will happen. Please kōkua! Waiwai ola ke kai! Shelley Stephens Maka'ala Nakoa Kea'au, HI