In Part 3 of this deep-sea mining documentary, the focus shifts from manganese nodules to the machines designed to collect them. As demand for nickel, cobalt, copper, and other metals grows, engineers are testing heavy seafloor collectors that could extract nodules from the deep ocean floor.
But the process is far from clean or simple. These machines could remove the top layer of seabed, stir up sediment plumes, and expose deep-sea life to metals released from the ocean floor. Scientists are studying how animals in the nodule fields react, and warning that many species there remain unknown.
Documentary: Gold Rush in the Deep Sea
Director: Friederike Lorenz & Tamar Baumgarten-Noort
Production: Gruppe 5, ZDF, ARTE (2016)
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