BERLIN (AP) — Automakers BMW and Volvo announced Wednesday that they support a moratorium on deep seabed mining for minerals used in electric vehicle batteries and other products. The call was also backed by Samsung’s EV battery unit and tech giant Google. It says fragile ocean ecosystems are already under threat from overfishing, pollution, noise and man-made climate change. While deep seabed mining is still in its infancy, several prospecting firms are seeking rights to extract potentially lucrative deposits from the depths of the ocean. The companies said they are committed “not to source minerals from the deep seabed; to exclude such minerals from our supply chains; and not to finance deep seabed mining activities.” The call was supported by the environmental group World Wildlife Fund.
