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TMC Subsidiary NORI Shares Preliminary Findings on Environmental Impacts of Pilot Nodule Collection System Test
Nauru Ocean Resources Inc. (NORI) has begun sharing emerging data on impacts of seafloor sediment plumes one year on from its 2022 test mining
About this update from Tmc The Metals Company Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Nauru Ocean Resources Inc. (NORI) has begun sharing emerging data on impacts of seafloor sediment plumes one year on from its 2022 test mining campaign.Building upon earlier laboratory predictions and in-field verifications, NORI now has multiple lines of evidence that indicate that the seafloor plume forms a gravity-driven turbidity current that hugs the seafloor and does not loft into the water column to be transported long distances by ocean currents, as has been widely speculated.Additional qualitative data acquired this month using a Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) at the seafloor in the NORI-D area show that sessile organisms identified during NORI’s environmental baseline studies are still present twelve months after its pilot nodule collection system test in areas that have been influenced by the seafloor plume.In the coming months, NORI will release additional data on midwater sediment plumes which will further address concerns as to the scope and scale of their distribution. NEW YORK, Dec. 14, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- TMC the metals company Inc. (Nasdaq: TMC) (“TMC” or the “Company”), an explorer of the world’s largest estimated undeveloped source of critical battery metals, today provided an update on the environment program of its NORI subsidiary, including a detailed overview of the latest research on the potential impacts of sediment plumes at the seafloor based upon emerging data from NORI’s 2022 pilot nodule collection system test. Contrary to plume models created by NGOs that were widely publicized in the media, NORI’s preliminary benthic (seafloor) plume data and modelling show that sediment mobilized by its nodule collector vehicle at depths of approximately 4 kilometers (kms) forms a gravity-driven turbidity current that hugs the contours of the seafloor and does not loft up into the water column where it could possibly be transported longer distances by ocean currents. Last month NORI provided an update on its environment program and shared the latest data on the characteristics of sediment plumes at the seafloor during a global stakeholder webinar [watch here]. During its 2022 nodule collection system trials, NORI worked with DHI Water and Environment — leading experts on sedimentation modelling — to implement a plume monitoring study. Over 50 assets and marine sensors were deployed to the 4km x 2km test fi...