Balancing Resources and Risks

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TARIFF
Trump’s tariffs face legal firestorm

President Trump’s tariff gambit, slapping hefty duties on imports from China to Canada, has sparked a legal uprising. From Illinois toy makers to California’s attorney general, a diverse coalition of states, small businesses, and conservative groups is suing, arguing Trump’s use of the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs—citing the trade deficit as an “emergency”—oversteps his authority.

Rick Woldenberg, CEO of Learning Resources, faces a grim choice: pay crushing tariffs or lose inventory. He’s fighting back with a lawsuit, joined by others like Stonemaier Games, which braces for a $1.5 million tariff hit. Democratic-led states like California and New York claim economic chaos, while Native American tribes protest Canadian tariffs as treaty violations. The suits, questioning Trump’s expansive executive power, could reshape trade policy, but major business groups like the U.S. Chamber of Commerce stay on the sidelines, betting on negotiation. As markets wobble and recession fears loom, these courtroom battles signal a high-stakes showdown.

ECONOMY
US economy wobbles as tariffs bite

The US economy, once a steady cruiser, hit turbulence in Q1, with GDP growth projected at a sluggish 0.4% annualized rate, the weakest in three years. Consumers tightened wallets and a tariff-fueled import surge bloated the trade deficit, per Bloomberg Economics. Wednesday’s GDP report will reveal the early scars of Trump’s April 2 tariff rollout, which has businesses wary and investment stalling.

Jobs held steady, with Friday’s report forecasting 130,000 new payrolls and unemployment at 4.2%. Consumer spending ticked up in March, but income growth cooled, and the Fed’s key inflation gauge likely eased to 2.6%, the lowest since June. The Fed’s expected to hold rates at its May meeting, eyeing tariff fallout. Globally, Canada’s election, China’s PMI dip, and Europe’s 0.2% growth signal trade war jitters, while central banks from Japan to Chile stand pat.

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ENERGY
Trump’s seafloor mining initiative

The deep sea, a realm of glowing creatures and ancient ecosystems, is now the stage for a high-stakes gamble. President Trump’s executive order, signed on April 24, 2025, has opened the door to industrial seafloor mining, aiming to harvest critical minerals like nickel, cobalt, and copper from polymetallic nodules. This move, bypassing the International Seabed Authority (ISA), positions the U.S. to lead in a new resource race but has ignited fierce debate over its environmental toll.

The executive order authorizes the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to issue permits for deep-sea mining, leveraging U.S. laws like the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act. This aligns with Trump’s broader strategy to reduce reliance on foreign minerals, particularly from China, which dominates global supply chains. The nodules, formed over millions of years, are prized for their role in electronics, electric vehicle batteries, and defense technologies. A 2023 Reuters report noted the White House’s consideration of such an order to fast-track mining, a plan now realized.

Two primary methods are proposed: dredging, using a claw-like device to scrape nodules, and vacuuming, which sucks them up. Both involve returning debris to the ocean, raising concerns about ecological disruption. Companies like The Metals Company, which recovered 3,000 tons of nodules in a 2022 test, and Impossible Metals, developing AI-powered robots, claim sustainable practices. Their research has documented thousands of species, but critics argue commercial-scale impacts are untested.

Scientists warn that mining could devastate deep-sea ecosystems. Nodules, hosting 50% of abyssal plain species, are critical habitats. Removing them could alter ecosystems for millions of years, per a 2023 Scientific American article. Sediment plumes may smother marine life, disrupt midwater species like tuna, and potentially contaminate seafood. Noise and light pollution add further risks, with only 15% of necessary data available for sustainable management. A 2020 study estimated a single mining operation could affect 32,000 square kilometers over 20 years, with restoration costs deemed “astronomical”.

The deep sea’s slow-paced life—corals living thousands of years—complicates impact predictions. “We don’t know if species can recolonize mined areas,” says Dr. Lisa Levin of Scripps Institution of Oceanography. The World Resources Institute emphasizes the need for transparent regulations. Globally, 32 countries, including U.S. states like Hawaii and California, support a moratorium, per Greenpeace. The ISA, aiming to finalize regulations by July 2025, criticized the U.S. move as undermining the “common heritage of mankind” principle.

The U.S., not a signatory to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), relies on domestic authority, a stance challenged by China and Russia at the ISA. Norway’s 2024 authorization of seabed mining in its waters set a precedent, but the U.S.’s unilateral approach has heightened tensions. Environmentalists argue terrestrial mining could meet mineral demands, citing a 2023 study that found no sustainability advantage in deep-sea mining.

Proponents see deep-sea mining as a path to mineral security, with global demand for critical metals projected to double by 2040 in a net-zero scenario. However, a 2022 UNEPFI report found no alignment with a sustainable blue economy, urging focus on circular economies. The U.S. move could spur competition, with China also advancing deep-sea mining for both resources and military advantages.

The ISA’s draft regulations remain incomplete, with over 30 unresolved issues, including environmental monitoring. Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs) are mandated but lack robust frameworks, per a 2017 ScienceDirect study. U.S. House Democrats, led by Rep. Raúl Grijalva, urged a moratorium in 2024, citing insufficient data.

Future Outlook

As The Metals Company seeks NOAA permits, the U.S. faces a delicate balance. Will rigorous environmental reviews temper the rush to mine, or will economic pressures prevail? The deep sea, a reservoir of biodiversity, hangs in the balance, with scientists pleading for a decade of research to fill knowledge gaps. The outcome will shape not only U.S. policy but also global ocean governance.

SOURCES

• Reuters: White House Weighs Executive Order to Fast-Track Deep-Sea Mining

• Scientific American: Deep-Sea Mining Could Begin Soon, Regulated or Not

• World Resources Institute: What We Know About Deep-Sea Mining and What We Don’t

• Carbon Brief: Q&A: What Does Deep-Sea Mining Mean for Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss?

• Greenpeace: Deep Sea Mining

• Atlantic Council: US Ratification of Ocean Treaty Will Unlock Deep-Sea Mining

• Pew Charitable Trusts: Deep-Sea Mining Regulations Remain Far From Complete

• ScienceDirect: Environmental Impact Assessment Process for Deep-Sea Mining

• Washington Post: China Set to Dominate Deep-Sea Mining