Page 101 - Economia Azul - versão: inglês

The equipment requirement becomes and expansion of the activities currently de- 6. Final considerations
more sophisticated from this depth of up veloped by the SGB-CPRM, especially those
to 200 meters, and the environmental risks related to the mapping of the geological There is an opportunity to hit the for- ing and investment in technologies that al-
are more significant than beneath waters. conditions of the continental shelf, can help tune of future generations. Brazil has in low the RGR to be explored and exploited
Even so, for this type of mining, the current to shorten this maturation. the RGR a concrete and rich opportunity not only by the State, but by the academy
technology is mature, and the problems, in Commodities under the sea to encourage our legislators and the gov- and the private sector, especially in Brazil;
general, can be solved with equipment de- Another relevant factor in this scenario ernment to organize seabed mining in the . Creation of a database, materials and
signed from the drilling of oil and gas wells. of challenges in the medium and long term Blue Amazon. There is already a starting studies, eventually managed by the SGB-
More significant technological challenges is that cobalt from RGR, or any other mineral point: the experience of the SGB-CPRM. CPRM, with human resources to interpret
arise when prospected areas go deeper than on the Brazilian continental shelf, is a mar- The exploration of minerals from the con- and strategically guide them, within an ac-
500 meters, as in the 1,600-meter-deep me- ket commodity. For example, there is a great tinental shelf implies prior knowledge of the tion plan and, therefore, in line with a min-
ga-mining project on the Papua New Guinea competition game concerning research and volume of reserves and location of deposits so ing, scientific policy, technology and energy
continental shelf. In an experimental phase, extraction costs. The State maintains con- that private and public actors are encouraged for the Blue Amazon;
this investment by a large Canadian mining trol over authorizations for goods extracted to invest in business prospecting and can an- . Optimize the use and management of
company causes a lot of uproar, as it is an from its continental shelf, while creating a alyze the feasibility of projects. There remains, equipment such as the hydroceanographic
adaptation to the seabed of the exploration favorable legal environment for companies at this point, one more confirmation of the vessel, the NPqHo Vital de Oliveira, provid-
carried out on land, carried out by gigantic to invest, explore and generate wealth and need to create a favorable scenario for invest- ing resources, management and projects to
vehicles (excavators and drillers), operated jobs for the country. ment. Brazil is late. The world already does. navigate and research not only the RGR, but
remotely. The controversy becomes stronger The environmental issue as an econo- Catching up on lost time: European the entire Blue Amazon;
when it is assumed that the impact on the mic and investment factor Union-sponsored prospecting (ROZEMEIJER . Build or reorganize a legal framework
sea floor would be similar to that of a mine Finally, there is the timeless environ- et al., 2018) suggests roadmaps for under- favorable to the occupation, use and sus-
on land. Although there are doubts about mental factor, which is consistently on the standing the limits and possibilities of deep- tainable exploitation of RGR resources and
the economic viability of the venture, the way to becoming a ubiquitous factor in the water mining, especially regarding available sea resources in a broader sense;
company (Nautilus Minerals) projects annual business world. The risks and potential en- technologies and how to use them to achieve . Adopt, alongside traditional political,
revenues close to 30 billion dollars, basically vironmental damage inherent to any mining new ones. Deposits with minimal environ- strategic and legal approaches, a market
with the extraction of copper. activity, on land or at sea, are increasingly mental damage and reasonable competi- approach to marine mineral resources.
The relationship between economic-com- relevant elements in the evaluation of stan- tiveness in land exploration. Every barrier to Treat them like the commodities they are;
mercial viability, sustainability and techno- dards called “ESG” criteria , or of a series of business, whether legal, political, economic, . Provide adjustments mentioned in the pre-
logical capacity marks all deepwater mining private initiatives that make up an “alphabet technological, or of any nature, deserves to vious items, and in others, to improve the per-
ventures. Current attempts are still incipient, soup” connected to the reduction of carbon be considered in the exploration of a marine ception of the business by people and markets
but they reveal enormous difficulties for this emissions, such as SBTs. 8 environment as exclusive, unique and even as from the perspective of criteria such as ESG;
type of mining, starting with the conditions ESG and SBT are not mandatory legal stan- inhospitable as the lunar one. . Acquisition of new ships properly
of the ocean (enormous pressure, depth, lack dards, they are parameters of conduct, per- Of all, some reflections can be extracted equipped to carry out surveys and other
of data and information on components and ception and valuation of assets and businesses from these considerations: activities related to studies of the marine
characteristics), the technological limits and that cannot be disregarded, or “undermined” . Elaboration of an action plan to identify environment, exploration and mineral ex-
the large volume of resources to be invested. by confusing, sparse and complex legislation legal and economic conditions for financ- ploration in the seabed.
This scenario, although briefly described, such as in Brazil, especially when it comes to
characterized deepwater mining as an activi- valuation. risks, investment costs, in short, References
ty that still needs time to mature and, conse- competition in global and volatile mining mar- BRASIL. Continental Shelf and UNCLOS mission to the Commission on the Limits
quently, needs regulation. The consolidation kets, but inexorably relevant and necessary. Article 76. Brazilian Partial Revised Sub- of the Continental Shelf. Brazilian Oriental

98 BLUE ECONOMY Blue Amazon: The Rio Grande Rise 99