Beyond the beaches: The Dominican Republic and the global debate over deep-sea mining

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The challenge is not solely to declare new protected areas, but ensure they have effective management

Originally published on Global Voices

When you think of the Dominican Republic, the first thing that might come to mind is paradise where sun, sand, and sea combine to offer unforgettable experiences to Dominican families and global travellers alike — but the country’s deep sea is also of critical importance.

Jonathan Delance, director of conservation of the National 30×30 Program of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, says that Dominican marine ecosystems are one of the country’s “greatest natural and strategic riches” — diverse, highly connected, and fundamental to national life.

From an ecological standpoint, coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, dunes, beaches, pelagic zones, and deep-sea ecosystems sustain biodiversity. From an economic and social standpoint, they are the foundation of tourism, fishing, and coastal protection.

Despite relevant research being conducted in the country, information remains limited. According to Delance, some of the available studies on Dominican deep waters have had a geophysical, geochemical, or geological focus, rather than an ecological one. This is largely because deep-sea research is expensive, complex, and requires specialised technology, such as remotely operated vehicles, acoustic equipment, deep-sea cameras, and highly specific taxonomic capabilities.

Precisely because of these limitations, for a long time the National System of Protected Areas lacked a clear representation of deep ecosystems and their underwater geomorphologies, a gap that began to close with the inclusion of the Beata Underwater Ridge as a conservation object within the Orlando Jorge Mera Marine Sanctuary, representing a relevant step forward for the country.

As part of the scientific basis for this process, Delance explains that the technical report on deep-sea fauna documented research between 900 and 4,200 metres deep, recording 1,855 biological observations and 3,294 organisms. One of the most interesting finds was 148 morphospecies, defined in the book Marine Biodiversity as a “group of specimens that can be distinguished from others on the basis of morphological characteristics,” including poriferans, cnidarians, echinoderms, chordates, arthropods, annelids, mollusks, and other yet undetermined organisms.

The pelagic fauna expedition conducted in 2024 covered 2,771 kilometres (1,722 miles) and identified six species of cetaceans, 15 species of birds, as well as sharks and turtle routes. Environmental DNA resulted in the identification of species — including more than 400 morphospecies — along the entire food chain, demonstrating the health and complexity of this space.

Despite these advances, Delance notes, important gaps persist: “We need more information on taxonomic identification at the species level, genetic connectivity, oceanographic dynamics, seasonal distribution, cumulative impacts, biogeography of deep species, and the response of these ecosystems to underwater disturbances, climate change, and other pressures.”

What is deep-sea mining?

According to the International Seabed Authority (ISA), deep-sea mining (DSM) refers to the extraction of mineral resources from deposits located on the deep seabed, typically found between 400 metres (1.300 feet) and 6.5 kilometres (4 miles) beneath the ocean’s surface.

There are three primary types of mineral deposits. Polymetallic nodules (PMN) were discovered on March 7, 1873, during the Challenger expedition; scientists described them as “several peculiar black oval bodies which were composed of almost pure manganese oxide.” The ISA states that they are composed of manganese, iron, silicates, and hydroxides, and can be as small as micro-nodules or as large as 20 centimetres. They are commonly found on the west coast of Mexico in the Pacific Ocean (also known as the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone), as well as the Central Indian Ocean Basin, and the Peru Basin. While polymetallic nodules can be found in lakes, the ones with greater economic value are typically located at depths of 4,000–6,000 metres (2.5 miles–3.7 miles), in areas with an extremely low sedimentation rate.

Polymetallic sulphides (PMS), which contain large amounts of copper, zinc, lead, iron, silver and gold, were first discovered in 1948 as part of the Swedish Albatross oceanographic expedition in the Red Sea. Later, in 1963 and 1966, scientists also found metalliferous muds and brines in the Red Sea Rift System.

Finally, cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts (CFC) are found at depths of less than 400 metres (1.300 feet) to more than 5,000 metres (3 miles), mainly in areas with strong volcanic activity. While similar to polymetallic nodules in their composition, these crusts are attracting interest from mining companies because they can contain relatively high amounts of cobalt, as well as platinum, rare earth elements, nickel, and manganese.

The ISA has signed 15-year contracts with 22 contractors for DSM exploration, with most of them covering PMN, eight going to PMS and five to CFC.

The contractors range from national governments — including South Korea, India, Poland and Russia — to research institutes and private companies. A small number, such as South Korea, India and China’s Ocean Mineral Resources Research and Development Association, hold contracts across more than one deposit type, while the majority have a single contract.

The Dominican Republic’s position

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which opened for signature in Montego Bay, Jamaica, in 1982 and entered into force in 1994, establishes the overarching legal framework governing ocean space, marine scientific research and environmental protection.

A central component of the Convention is the definition of “the Area,” the seabed and ocean floor beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. UNCLOS declares the Area and its resources to be the “common heritage of mankind,” and establishes the ISA to administer these resources and regulate their exploration and eventual exploitation.

Between 2020 and 2025, the Dominican Republic had an active participation in the ISA, which is headquartered in Kingston, Jamaica.

At the ISA Assembly (ISBA28) in July 2023, Edward Pérez Reyes, the Dominican Republic’s then representative to the ISA, who twice served as its vice president, presented the country’s position on deep-sea mining. While he recognised the importance of these minerals for an energy transition, the DR advocated for a moratorium until there was a solid legal framework and sufficient scientific evidence to guarantee the protection of marine ecosystems. He also proposed sustainable alternatives, the circular economy, and recycling, as well as an equitable distribution of benefits and strengthening of the management of marine resources.

“The Dominican Republic was never against the International Seabed Authority or the process outlined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,” Pérez Reyes, who is now the DR’s ambassador to Japan, explained. “Quite the opposite. We always understood that the international community’s effort to regulate the exploration and eventual exploitation of the seabed was a legitimate exercise. Before that legal framework existed, the risk was that countries with the technological capacity to do so would act on their own. The Convention came precisely to prevent that, and to establish common rules for everyone. So, the discussion was about something else. The question was whether the international community was already in a position to move from exploration to commercial exploitation. Our impression was that it was not yet.”

The DR’s stance, he said — the result of an inter-institutional process involving the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, the Ministry of Energy and Mines, the National Authority for Maritime Affairs (ANAMAR), and more — was never intended to halt the process. Rather, it was to allow science to keep advancing and for the ISA to finish building the regulatory framework that the Convention itself had mandated it to develop. “Every time we learned of a new research study,” Pérez Reyes recalled, “we ended up thinking that there was still much more to know. And that led us back to the same reflection: we had to continue researching before deciding such great consequence.”

Even today, the principles that guided that position still seem valid to him, though the information on which decisions are made can always change. “If science provides new elements, a responsible state has to analyse them,” Pérez Reyes added.

For Delance, scientific exploration of the deep sea is necessary to better understand these ecosystems before considering any form of utilisation. In his view, the DR still lacks key information, including biodiversity baselines, bathymetric and geomorphological maps, data on vulnerable species, ecological connectivity, oceanographic processes, environmental risks, and the resilience of ecosystems.

He believes that the Dominican stance in favour of a precautionary pause in deep-sea mining responds to the need to first generate sufficient scientific evidence to properly plan, regulate, and protect these spaces, and warned that if deep-sea ecosystems are not protected, the DR and wider Caribbean could lose still-unknown biodiversity, genetic resources of potential scientific value, migratory corridors, and essential habitats for threatened species. The country must therefore move, Delance believes, toward marine spatial planning in order to balance conservation and the sustainable use of these strategic ecosystems.

Environmental groups raise opposition

The Magua Ecological Foundation, which is committed to environmental conservation, biodiversity protection, and the sustainable use of natural resources, categorically disapproves of deep-sea mining in the DR, cautioning that the impacts could be severe and irreversible.

Its president, Manuel Alejandro Rodríguez, said that deep-sea mining represents a significant threat to marine ecosystems, whose biological richness and ecological value are fundamental to the well-being of present and future generations. DSM could lead to habitat destruction, species loss, pollution, and disruption of ecological processes, and potentially cause irreversible environmental damage due to the release of metals and other polluting substances into the marine environment.

“In an island nation like the Dominican Republic,” he stressed, “whose seas support extraordinary biodiversity and are essential for activities such as fishing, tourism, scientific research, and the protection of coastal communities, the risks associated with deep-sea mining far outweigh any potential economic benefits.”

Reaffirming the precautionary principle as a fundamental pillar of environmental management, he added, “As long as scientific uncertainties persist regarding the consequences of this activity and there are no guarantees that it can be carried out without causing irreparable damage, it is essential to prioritise the conservation of our marine ecosystems.”

The Foundation wants the authorities, the private sector, scientific community, and society in general to strengthen the protection of our oceans, promote public policies based on the best available scientific evidence, and commit to sustainable development models.

Sixto Inchaustegui, president of Grupo Jaragua, another NGO working for the sustainable management of biodiversity, said that the DR does not know where deep-sea mining activities could take place along its coasts, especially since its continental shelf is very narrow and the country relies heavily on marine and coastal ecosystem services, including tourism, fisheries, and protection against hurricanes. Such ecosystems are already highly threatened and degraded due to land-use changes, mangrove loss, erosion, overfishing, coral mortality, pollution, and other pressures, all of which are being exacerbated by climate change.

New representative to the ISA

On July 14, Ambassador Nancy Patricia Franjul Pérez presented her credentials as the DR’s new permanent representative to the ISA, and reaffirmed the country’s commitment to help develop a solid, transparent, and science-based regulatory framework for the exploitation of mineral resources in the Area.

Franjul Pérez also emphasised the critical role of the ISA at a time when the international community seeks to balance resource security, marine environmental protection, technological development, and the equitable distribution of benefits. ISA Secretary-General Leticia Carvalho said she looks forward to continuing the dialogue, “including on the draft exploitation regulations and the wider work of the Authority, in a spirit of transparency, environmental responsibility, and respect” for the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

The future of Dominican marine protection

In 2024, the DR became the first Caribbean country to surpass one of the targets of the global 30×30 environmental commitment, protecting 30.8 percent of its waters. As Delance explained, however, the challenge now is not solely to declare new protected areas, but to ensure they have effective management.

Currently, more than 90 percent of the protected marine area has management plans, a fundamental tool to guide conservation, regulate permitted uses, monitor ecosystems, and support decision-making. Looking to the future, efforts must focus on moving toward effective protection by strengthening monitoring and technological surveillance, regulating maritime traffic, developing national scientific capacity, and generating more research on deep ecosystems.

The DR will participate alongside Colombia in a scientific mission belonging to the inaugural programme of the REV Ocean, the world’s largest ocean research vessel, which will conduct the Beata Ridge mission in 2027.

The expedition will allow for the study of the deep ecosystems of the Beata Underwater Ridge, generate information on its biodiversity and ecological connectivity, and assess potential threats to strengthen ocean conservation and management. The country will also initiate a marine spatial planning process covering both protected and unprotected areas, enabling better organisation of ocean uses and supporting evidence-based decision-making.

Source: Global Voices