The International Seabed Authority (ISA), the U.N.-associated regulator of seabed mining activities in areas beyond national jurisdiction, has extended a controversial deep-sea mining exploration contract and once again failed to finalize the rules needed to regulate commercial seabed mining. The ISA’s 36-member council, which met from July 13 to 24, decided to extend the exploration contract for a subsidiary of Canadian deep-sea mining firm The Metals Company (TMC), allowing the company to retain exclusive exploration rights for blocks of the seabed in the Pacific Ocean. This decision stemmed from the ISA’s finding that TMC’s subsidiary, Nauru Ocean Resources Inc. (NORI), had met all the criteria for renewal. This move was met with criticism from both ISA council members and observers since another of TMC’s subsidiaries, TMC USA, is also pursuing deep-sea mining in the same areas outside of the ISA’s legal framework and, in early July, even launched a lawsuit against the ISA for its scrutiny of TMC’s activities. Louisa Casson of Greenpeace International, who was an observer at the council meeting, said in a statement that the ISA’s decision to extend TMC’s contract set a “dangerous precedent for both the deep sea and the rule of law” that also “calls into serious question the regulator’s ability to enforce basic compliance under its existing rules.” Organizations including Greenpeace International are critical of deep-sea mining, arguing that this activity would have devastating and likely irreversible effects on the marine environment.  Forty-five countries have also called for a moratorium or precautionary pause…This article was originally published on Mongabay