The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) just published two applications from The Metals Company seeking permits to conduct exploratory deep sea mining operations in the Clarion Clipperton Zone (CCZ). This is a required procedural step before the permits can be issued. Deep sea mining threatens permanent damage to the ocean floor, one of the last intact ecosystems on Earth. The deep ocean – especially the Clarion-Clipperton Zone – contains an abundance and diversity of life, with species new-to-science collected all the time. But this richness doesn't prevent industry from regularly trying to use it for mining. They want access to its deposits of manganese, nickel, copper, and cobalt. “The Trump administration is getting dangerously close to sacrificing life on the ocean floor, one of the last intact ecosystems on Earth,” said David Derrick, a staff attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “These mining applications are based more on fantasy than data, a...