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A 26-year-old test-mining track in the Peru Basin, Pacific Ocean illustrates how slowly abyssal ecosystems of the deep seabed recover from physical disturbance. Image: Geomar, ROV Kiel 6000. From Chin, A and Hari, K (2020)/20100260
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The deep seabed in international waters beyond the Cook Islands, is also referred to as the Common Heritage of Humankind. As a sponsoring State of an area proposed for mining in the Clarion Clipperton Zone, the Cook Islands has a responsibility to protect it, just as we do our own seabed. Deep seabed mining is at a crossroads of advanced technological capabilities and improved scientific understanding of the oceans.

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