Nodules

Polymetallic nodules are potato-sized lumps found in the seabed that contain metals used in battery manufacturing and high-tech industries.

Mining for polymetallic nodules would cause irreversible damage to the region, including Kiribati the Cook Islands, Nauru, Tonga, Papua New Guinea and Tuvalu.

Entitled "Predicting the Impacts of Mining Deep Sea Polymetallic Nodules in the Pacific Ocean," the 52-page report represents a scientific consensus based on 250 peer-reviewed articles.

The report also said mining for polymetallic nodules, potato-sized lumps found in the seabed that contain metals used in battery manufacturing and high-tech industries, would cause “essentially irreversible damage” to the region, including Kiribati the Cook Islands, Nauru, Tonga, Papua New Guinea and Tuvalu.