Uncertainties concerning deep-seabed mining relate to the expected impacts on the abyssal benthic and pelagic environment and its ecosystems but also include geopolitical, economic, societal and cultural uncertainty. The uncertain impacts from mining lead to anxiety and a low societal acceptance for the activity and are not the same for everybody at the same time. Hence, uncertainty is an important element of the risk involved in deep-seabed mining. This chapter describes the different risks involved, develops a methodology for risk assessment for the exploitation of marine mineral resources that takes into consideration the state of knowledge and evolving research on deep-sea ecosystems, and informs on possible environmental threshold values in relation to deep-seabed mining operations.
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-87982-2_17