An entrepreneur says his ocean-mining plans could give the United States energy independence, but scientists believe the proposal could instead cause major damage.

What's happening?

NPR reported Gerard Barron's latest venture, The Metals Company, is seeking approval from the U.S. government to mine the ocean for minerals such as nickel and cobalt.

Barron wants to focus on polymetallic nodules, which are trillions of small rocks that line a portion of the ocean floor between Hawaiʻi and Mexico. The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that these nodules have more nickel and cobalt than the rest of the world combined.

"This resource can help America become mineral independent, just like it became energy independent through shale and gas," Barron told NPR.

In April, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to fast-track such deep-sea mining initiatives, giving Barron hope that his company will be able to proceed.

But this project, and others like it, have faced considerable backlash.

Why is ocean mining concerning?

Proponents of deep-sea mining say the process is similar to picking up golf balls from the ocean floor, but many scientists say it could do untold damage to the underwater terrain and its marine life.

Some types of marine life, including sponges, live on the nodules that The Metals Company hopes to mine. And retrieving these nodules could create huge amounts of sediment that may contain heavy metals.

"On land, we all see how destructive mining is," Arizona State University oceanographer Sheryl Murdock told NPR. "So I don't think it's going to be less destructive. It's that people are going to be less aware of it."

Barron has said his company will leave roughly one-fifth of the nodules behind in the ocean, so as not to destroy marine life's habitat, if it's allowed to proceed.

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What's being done about ocean mining?

The U.S. isn't the only country considering deep-sea mining. Japan is moving ahead with plans to mine some of its deepest waters.

But several countries, including Portugal and Norway, have either paused or banned deep-sea mining, as has the small island territory of New Caledonia.

And many companies, including Google, BMW, Volvo, and Samsung, have asked for a moratorium on the practice and vowed not to use minerals that come from deep-sea mining.

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