SYDNEY -- Seabed mining critics worry that a recent agreement on research collaboration between the Cook Islands and China will focus on exploitation of seabed critical minerals rather than understanding the potential environmental impacts of the controversial endeavor.
While visiting China last week, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown signed a comprehensive strategic partnership (CSP), while the country's Seabed Minerals Authority (SBMA) met with Chinese counterparts to discuss collaborating on seabed mineral exploration.
