A UN body could delay work on a global rulebook for mining the ocean floor until next year, after having to reduce its agenda in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the organization said Thursday.
The International Seabed Authority will hold its assembly and council meetings in October in a reduced format. It will then decide whether to discuss the Draft Exploitation Regulations for mineral resources, Secretary-General Michael Lodge said in an emailed statement Thursday.
“If there is not sufficient time for this agenda item, it may be deferred until 2021,” Lodge said.
The Mining Code, as the regulations are known, ...