Deep sea miners have turned water hoses on Greenpeace activists attempting to block their prospecting in the Pacific Ocean, according to footage released by the NGO.
For the past week, an international team of Greenpeace activists have been using canoes and dinghies to obstruct the Coco, a deep sea mining exploration vessel, as it collects data to file for a mining permit for waters between Mexico and Hawaii.
On Friday, after a Dutch court largely refused an application by miners to stop the protests, sailors on board the Coco appeared to turn hoses on the activists.
The Coco is operated by a subsidiary of Canadian-based mining company The Metals Company, which has been conducting exploratory research in the Clarion Clipperton zone of the Pacific since 2011.
They say data from their latest expedition, researching how the seabed recovered from exploration last year, will be used in an application to begin mining in the area in 2025.
But opponents of deep sea mining, among them two dozen governments, including Mexico, say too little is known about its potential environmental impacts to go ahead safely, and have called for a moratorium on any licensing.
Greenpeace activists from Mexico, Argentina, Norway, South Korea, Poland and the UK have been protesting against the Coco since 23 November, carrying out sorties in canoes launched from the Arctic Sunrise, a Greenpeace ship, to stop the Coco’s crew from deploying equipment.
Two activists also boarded the Coco and vowed to camp on the crane used to deploy and retrieve equipment from the water until The Metals Company agreed to leave.
The Metals Company sought an injunction in the Netherlands, where the Arctic Sunrise is registered, to force protesters to stay 500 metres from the Coco. But in a summary ruling, Amsterdam district court said protests could continue around the ship, although it ruled that Greenpeace’s climbers had to come down or the organisation would face fines of €50,000 a day.
Both sides have claimed victory in the case. Greenpeace called the ruling “a massive setback for the deep sea mining industry”. It also lashed out at The Metals Company, claiming it “has never been interested in scrutiny and they can’t stand that Greenpeace is watching and opposing them at every turn”.
“We are determined to keep bringing this dangerous industry to public attention and will continue to disrupt this dangerous industry,” said Mads Christensen, head of Greenpeace International.
Gerard Barron, executive chair of The Metals Company, said: “We respect Greenpeace’s right to peaceful protest and expression of opinions. However, our foremost responsibility is to ensure the safe continuance of our legally mandated operations, and the safety of all those involved.”
He said the company would “continue to gather the important scientific data” for members of the International Seabed Authority.
