Oceanic Diamond Mining

As we learned from Steven Press yesterday, the open-pit diamond mines of Namibia monopolized by the De Beers are slowly declining. Some hypothesize that by 2050 production from these mines might stop completely. However, mining companies are now expanding operations into the Atlantic, using giant vacuum-like hoses to pull diamonds up from the bottom of the ocean, as illustrated in the diagram below.

Though the concept of underwater mining was initially explored decades ago, technology is only now making it economically viable. This is a concerning prospect for environmentalists, who are scrambling to ensure that adequate regulation is created before the industry booms and mining occurs without consideration of environmental consequences. 

Thus off-shore diamond mining puts Namibia in a difficult spot, as a country economically dependent on diamonds (supplying about 10% of the GDP) but also constitutionally committed to environmentalism. The De Beers group is obviously very interested in pushing the Namibian government toward mining, and they named their new diamond-seeking ship (with state-of-the-art technology) the SS Nujoma after the last Namibian president. 

- Madelyn

Sources:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/a-new-frontier-for-diamond-mining-the-ocean/2017/07/01/a04d5fbe-0e40-4508-894d-b3456a28f24c_story.html?utm_term=.105186c767e5

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/07/deep-sea-mining-five-facts/

http://www.bdo.com.na/en-gb/industries/natural-resources/mining-in-namibia

https://www.wealthdaily.com/resources/underwater-mining-companies/11

http://www.nbc.na/sites/default/files/styles/large/public/SS%20Nujoma.JPG?itok=fhbqP_oD