To address potential concerns and further strengthen the protection of the Cook Islands’ interests, I have emailed the Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) the following additions or amendments to the draft seabed mining regulations.
Read MoreYou can read all the latest news and updates on the Cook Islands seabed minerals sector here.
We are committed to sustainably and responsibly developing our SBM sector for the benefit of our Cook Islands people. In line with the precautionary approach, any future decision on whether or not we will allow harvesting to occur needs to be science based.
To achieve this, we need more data and information about the nature of our mineral resource and the marine environment so that we can better understand and address the potential environmental impacts and likely commercial viability. This understanding can only be obtained through exploration research work, which is why the Seabed Minerals Exploration Programme is important.
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The Opposition leader has welcomed the regulatory framework for deep-sea mining but maintains the stance against any mining activities until ‘environmentally friendly technology’ is available and Cook Islanders are fully involved.
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An online opinion poll on deep sea mining has been criticised by the government regulator responsible for overseeing seabed minerals activities in the Cook Islands as “fundamentally flawed”.
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A Cook Islands delegation, led by Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister, Honourable Sonny Williams, attended the International Seabed Authority's (ISA) 29th Council and Assembly Sessions, held in Kingston, Jamaica, from 15 July to 2 August. The Commissioner Alex Herman and Senior Knowledge Management Officer Rima Browne from the Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) attended the Council meetings and were later joined by the Assistant Minister and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Foreign Service Officer, Tatryanna Utanga, for the Assembly.
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Te-Ara Henderson, Senior Policy and Legal Officer of the Cook Islands Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) attended Part I of the 29th Session of the Council. The Council sessions are hosted three times a year at the headquarters of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) in Kingston, Jamaica. The Cook Islands is a member state and sponsoring state of an Exploration Licence in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone.
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