[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4537 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4537

  To prohibit certain mining activities on the deep seabed and Outer 
               Continental Shelf, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 11, 2023

Mr. Case (for himself, Mr. Grijalva, Mr. Huffman, Ms. Bonamici, Ms. Lee 
 of California, and Ms. Pingree) introduced the following bill; which 
           was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To prohibit certain mining activities on the deep seabed and Outer 
               Continental Shelf, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``American Seabed Protection Act''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN MINING ACTIVITIES ON DEEP SEABED AND 
              OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) As determined by the United Nations, most recently in 
        its Sustainable Development Goals report, our world's oceans 
        are at great risk from a number of factors, including 
        atmospheric change, resource extraction, and pollution.
            (2) The United Nation's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable 
        Development, launched by the 2015 UN Summit in New York 
        established Sustainable Development Goal 14 (SDS 14), to 
        conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas, and marine 
        resources. Target 2 of SDS 14 commits States to sustainably 
        manage marine ecosystems to avoid significant adverse impacts 
        and strengthen their resilience.
            (3) The international marine scientific and policy 
        consensus is that deep seabed mining presents a major risk to 
        the marine environment, including--
                    (A) the direct loss of unique and ecologically 
                important species;
                    (B) large sediment plumes that will negatively 
                affect ecosystems well beyond the actual mining sites;
                    (C) noise pollution that will cause physiological 
                and behavioral stress to marine species;
                    (D) likely contamination of commercially important 
                species of food fish; and
                    (E) likely negative impacts on carbon sequestration 
                dynamics and deep-ocean carbon storage.
            (4) The United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, 
        15th Conference of Parties, Decision 15/24 encourages member 
        States to ensure that, before deep seabed mineral exploitation 
        is permitted, the related impacts on the marine environment and 
        biodiversity are sufficiently researched, the risks to the 
        marine ecosystem are sufficiently understood, and sufficient 
        regulation and conditions are imposed to ensure that 
        exploitation does not cause harmful effects to the marine 
        environment and biodiversity.
            (5) The 2022 United Nations Environment Programme Financial 
        Initiative report on deep seabed mining states that the 
        financing of such activities is not consistent with Sustainable 
        Blue Economy Finance Principles.
            (6) There is currently insufficient scientific information 
        on the deep sea and related marine ecosystems to fully and 
        accurately assess the risks and impacts of deep seabed mining 
        activities.
    (b) Prohibition of Certain Mining Activities on Deep Seabed and 
Outer Continental Shelf.--
            (1) Deep seabed.--Notwithstanding any provision of the Deep 
        Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (30 U.S.C. 1401 et seq.), no 
        license, permit, or other authorization may be issued for 
        exploration or commercial recovery.
            (2) Outer continental shelf.--Notwithstanding any provision 
        of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1301 et 
        seq.), no license, permit, or other authorization may be issued 
        for exploration, development, or production of a hardrock 
        mineral on the Outer Continental Shelf.
            (3) Exception for scientific research.--Paragraphs (1) and 
        (2) shall not apply to the issuance of a license, permit, or 
        other authorization to carry out scientific research 
        activities.
    (c) Assessment of Environmental Impacts of Mining Activities on 
Deep Seabed and Outer Continental Shelf.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall seek to 
        enter into an agreement with the National Academies of Science, 
        Engineering, and Medicine to conduct a comprehensive study of 
        the environmental impacts of mining activities on the deep 
        seabed and Outer Continental Shelf.
            (2) Submission of assessment.--The Secretary shall submit 
        to the appropriate Congressional committees a report regarding 
        the findings of the study described in paragraph (1).
            (3) Contents.--The study described in paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) A characterization of ecosystems--
                            (i) on the deep seabed and Outer 
                        Continental Shelf;
                            (ii) in the overlying water columns of the 
                        deep seabed and Outer Continental Shelf; and
                            (iii) on seamounts and hydrothermal vents.
                    (B) An assessment of the potential impacts 
                associated with mining activities on the deep seabed 
                and Outer Continental Shelf on--
                            (i) habitats and species on the deep seabed 
                        and Outer Continental Shelf and in the 
                        overlying water columns of the deep seabed and 
                        Outer Continental Shelf, including--
                                    (I) an approximate quantification 
                                of the spatial extent and timescale of 
                                such impacts; and
                                    (II) the potential for the recovery 
                                of such habitats and species from such 
                                impacts;
                            (ii) the capacity of deep sea and open 
                        ocean processes and ecosystems to sequester 
                        greenhouse gases;
                            (iii) users of the marine environment, 
                        including--
                                    (I) commercial and recreational 
                                fisheries;
                                    (II) recreational users;
                                    (III) aquaculture operations; and
                                    (IV) developers of subsea 
                                infrastructure; and
                            (iv) indigenous peoples and cultures linked 
                        to marine species and the marine environment.
                    (C) An assessment of the potential impacts of 
                sediment plumes from disturbance of the deep seabed and 
                Outer Continental Shelf and collector vessel discharge 
                on pelagic species and food webs.
                    (D) An approximate quantification of the greenhouse 
                gas emissions associated with mining activities on the 
                deep seabed and Outer Continental Shelf, including such 
                emissions that may result from the alteration of the 
                biology, geology, or chemistry of the sediment on or 
                the overlying water column of the deep seabed and Outer 
                Continental Shelf.
                    (E) An assessment of the viability of alternatives 
                to the use of minerals found on the deep seabed and 
                Outer Continental Shelf, including--
                            (i) developing a greater capacity for and 
                        promoting the reuse and recycling of such 
                        minerals in circulation;
                            (ii) developing and promoting the use of 
                        substitute minerals and materials that have 
                        fewer or less severe environmental impacts 
                        associated with such use; and
                            (iii) developing methods to reduce the 
                        environmental impacts of terrestrial mining 
                        practices and other similar initiatives.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate Congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) with respect to the House of Representatives--
                            (i) the Committee on Foreign Affairs; and
                            (ii) the Committee on Natural Resources; 
                        and
                    (B) with respect to the Senate--
                            (i) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                        Transportation;
                            (ii) the Committee on Energy and Natural 
                        Resources; and
                            (iii) the Committee on Foreign Relations.
            (2) Commercial recovery.--The term ``commercial recovery'' 
        has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Deep Seabed 
        Hard Mineral Resources Act (30 U.S.C. 1403).
            (3) Deep seabed.--The term ``deep seabed'' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 4 of the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral 
        Resources Act (30 U.S.C. 1403).
            (4) Development.--The term ``development'' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 2 of the Outer Continental Shelf 
        Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331).
            (5) Exploration.--The term ``exploration''--
                    (A) when used with respect to the deep seabed, has 
                the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Deep 
                Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act (30 U.S.C. 1403); and
                    (B) when used with respect to the Outer Continental 
                Shelf, has the meaning given the term in section 2 of 
                the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331).
            (6) Outer continental shelf.--The term ``Outer Continental 
        Shelf'' has the meaning given the term ``outer Continental 
        Shelf'' in section 2 of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act 
        (43 U.S.C. 1331).
            (7) Production.--The term ``production'' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 2 of the Outer Continental Shelf 
        Lands Act (43 U.S.C. 1331).
            (8) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Commerce, acting through the Administrator of the National 
        Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
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