Namibia has granted environmental clearance for an offshore phosphate mining project that would become the world’s first commercial seabed-dredging operation for the mineral, despite opposition from environmental groups and the fishing industry.

The government certificate issued this month advances plans by Namibian Marine Phosphate (NMP) to dredge the ocean floor around 120km off the town of Walvis Bay for the key ingredient in fertilisers vital to agriculture.

NMP said the clearance does not mean it will immediately begin commercial mining operations as it still needs to complete permitting, including for the necessary land-based infrastructure.

World-first project raises alarms

The certificate has raised concerns among conservationists, with the Confederation of Namibian Fishing Associations reportedly threatening to challenge its validity.

Should it proceed, the Sandpiper Project would be a world first, with other offshore phosphate mining projects having been held back by environmental concerns.

NMP said it planned controlled dredging across approximately 1.7 square kilometres annually to produce three million tonnes of phosphate concentrate per year.

Over the 20-year licence period, this would represent the equivalent of 0.002% of Namibia’s seabed, it said after the clearance was announced.

The group, which is 85% owned by an Oman-based mining company, said no immediate or urgent commercial operations are planned.

Decade-long silence ends

The government’s announcement that the environmental certificate had been cleared ended a decade-long silence about the project.

The group was given a licence in 2011 but came to a standstill in 2013 over concerns about the impact on marine ecosystems and Namibia’s multi-million-dollar commercial fishing industry.

Deep-sea mining seeks to tap previously untouched seabed deposits of commodities, including cobalt and nickel, but the industry has been stalled by environmental concerns.

Scientists warn of toxic risks

Sediment plumes generated by seabed excavation and processing pose significant risks to ecosystems and public health, said marine scientist Bronwen Currie.

Underwater dredging risks releasing heavy metals and toxic substances trapped deep in the seabed, which could enter the marine food chain and threaten commercial fish stocks, she told AFP.

“It is really not a good idea, considering this would liberate very toxic elements from the seabed, as a lot of heavy metals are buried deep in the sediment,” Currie said.

Because phosphate is a low-value commodity, vast quantities must be dredged to make operations viable, she said.

“All of these dangers have not yet been addressed in any of the environmental impact studies,” she said.

While Namibia is not unique in having phosphate deposits, other nations have decided against ocean mining, she said. “New Zealand has shown categorically that it is not viable, both environmentally and financially.”

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Marine ecosystem under threat

Environmental specialist Peter Cunningham told AFP that potential sediment plumes could impact rocky shoreline habitats, crayfish spawning and breeding species.

“It is not worth it for Namibia to experiment on its seabed, putting its marine life and the entire movement of ocean water at risk for something as simple as phosphate,” he told AFP.

“If we have a problem with above-ground mines, you can just imagine what the problem would be for underwater mines,” Cunningham said.

The Ocean Conservation Namibia non-profit group said the project “threatens to turn Namibia’s marine ecosystem into an untested experimental zone, putting our ocean habitats, water quality, and local fisheries at immediate risk.”

“Marine phosphate mining at this scale has never been conducted anywhere in the world,” it said after the certificate was issued.

“We cannot allow Namibia to become a global guinea pig.”

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