Clement "CJ" Bermudez Jr said the CNMI, Guam, and American Samoa have no automatic claim to revenues because they are US territories. Photo: 123rf/ dam@seaphotoart.com
The Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) stands to gain nothing economically from deep sea mining in federal waters.
That was the blunt assessment from economist Clement "CJ" Bermudez Jr, who told a packed forum on 3 December that, unlike independent Pacific nations, such as the Cook Island, which can issue their own licenses and directly reap profits from seabed minerals, the CNMI, Guam, and American Samoa have no automatic claim to revenues because they are US territories and the proposed mining area lies within the United States' Exclusive Economic Zone.
The proposal is to mine in the seabed within the 200-mile EEZ of the Marianas - the CNMI and Guam.
"All licensing, royalties, monitoring, and enforcement are federal functions," Bermudez said.
"There's no automatic revenue sharing between the federal government and the CNMI when it comes to the US model for deep sea mining and sales."
He added any benefit would require an act of Congress - an uncertain prospect at best.
His warning set the tone for the Northern Marianas College (NMC) Cooperative Research, Extension and Education Services and the CNMI Green Growth Initiative's "Community Conversations: Deep Sea Mining in the CNMI" forum, where scientists, traditional navigators, teachers, lawmakers, and ocean advocates filled the American Memorial Park indoor auditorium to capacity.
For three hours, panelists and residents dissected what is at stake as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) weighs whether to open potential leasing blocks roughly 128 miles east of Saipan - an area firmly under federal jurisdiction. Economic, scientific, cultural, and political uncertainties dominated the night.
'Very little data'
NMC Natural Resource Management Programme coordinator and instructor Kelsey McLennan highlighted how little is known about the ecosystems targeted for exploration.
"Not only are we looking at this from an intrinsic value of knowing that these ecosystems are here, but also from the ecological perspective of this very complicated food web," she said.
"Scientists cannot reiterate enough how very little data is collected in the area under potential release."
She said polymetallic nodules and ferromanganese crusts - the minerals sought by mining companies - take millions of years to form and serve as the only hard substrate in the abyssal plain.
Mining experiments conducted decades ago still show visible tracks, she said.
One mining operation could release a dewatering plume equal to 20 Olympic-sized pools, carrying trace metals that could enter the food chain.
Traditional master navigator Cecilio Raiukiulipiy of Satawal, Yap, warned of the cultural fallout, saying Pacific navigators do not recognise the political boundaries imposed over their ancestral waters.
He said the waters east of the Marianas play a critical role in traditional voyaging, where swells, currents, and temperature shifts serve as guides across the open ocean.
Coral Reef Initiative coordinator Kalani Reyes reminded the audience that deep sea mining is already under exploration just outside the US EEZ, where China, Russia, and Japan hold licenses from the International Seabed Authority ISA).
But because the United States has not ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, it does not participate in ISA negotiations, despite the proximity of foreign claims to CNMI waters.
If BOEM moves forward, leases could be issued for up to 30 years, even though disturbed deep sea environments can take millions to recover.
Friends of the Mariana Trench chair Sheila Jack Babauta emphasised the need for more time and public engagement. The CNMI and Guam have jointly requested a 120-day extension to the comment period, but as of this week, Washington has not granted one.
She pointed to American Samoa's experience, where despite overwhelming public and political opposition, including 76,000 comments, the federal government still advanced its Request For Information (RFI) to Step 2.
After the RFI comes a Request For Proposal, which means in this case the BOEA will ask for bids to move forward with sea-bed mining.
Reppresentative Vincent Aldan underscored the CNMI's limited leverage under the US Territorial Clause, warning that Congress can act without being obligated to listen to territorial concerns. Still, he argued that collective action among all US territories could force Washington to rethink its stance.
"We didn't land on Plymouth Rock. Plymouth Rock landed on us," he said.
"So why are you making decisions for me that affect my life, my children's lives, and my great-grandchildren's lives? Can you beat it? Yes, we can!"
Stay engaged, urges Gurley
John Gurley, owner of Micronesian Environmental Services, reminded the audience that the area covered by the RFI stems from a 2009 agreement between the CNMI and the federal government when the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument was created.
As part of those negotiations, Gurley said the CNMI sought to protect its fishing rights and preserve the possibility of future subsea mining, and the federal government designated the current RFI zone as the area the CNMI could explore.
Sixteen years later, he said, the RFI is merely an information-gathering step, not a mining permit, and rejecting it outright is premature.
He argued no one can assess impacts without first knowing what mining methods would even be used, including how turbidity plumes behave or whether they would rise to the surface.
He urged the CNMI to stay engaged so the federal government doesn't "take the ball and run," adding that while revenue-sharing may be difficult, the CNMI could push any future mining company to establish a home port in Saipan and invest in coastal infrastructure rather than rely solely on federal royalties.
NMC's Patricia Coleman closed the forum by urging residents to submit substantive comments before the 12 December deadline, regardless of whether an extension is granted. She challenged the CNMI to surpass American Samoa's 76,000-comment benchmark.
"Let's beat that number because if we don't put forward our views on this issue, which directly impacts our culture, our food system, and our economy, we may lose that opportunity," she said.
