WEBVTT 00:02.100 --> 00:04.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% AMNA NAWAZ: In our globally connected lives, the companies that make the technology we rely 00:04.533 --> 00:09.200 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% on every day can run headlong into traditional cultures and the environment that sustains them. 00:11.233 --> 00:15.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Last night we featured a new potentially lucrative industry, deep-sea mining. Tonight, 00:17.733 --> 00:20.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% videographer Edward Kiernan and special correspondent Willem Marx return to Papua 00:20.900 --> 00:25.900 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% New Guinea and the Bismarck Sea, where locals are fighting back to preserve a vanishing way of life. 00:28.533 --> 00:32.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% WILLEM MARX: Rodney Kadog has been prepping bait like this since he was a teenager, 00:32.233 --> 00:37.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% when he first ventured out alone in a canoe. Fishing far out at sea or on 00:39.533 --> 00:43.866 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% reefs closer to shore has sustained Papua New Guinea's coastal communities for centuries. 00:45.733 --> 00:50.366 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% Like many local kids, Rodney started catching fish around age 6. He later 00:50.366 --> 00:55.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% moved to this village called Kono to get married. Its shoreline on an island 00:57.333 --> 01:01.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% named New Ireland has been his home ever since and fishing remains his primary job. 01:02.266 --> 01:04.000 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% RODNEY KADOG, Fisherman (through translator): 01:04.000 --> 01:06.666 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% It can help us with our families. It generates financial income, 01:06.666 --> 01:11.666 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% which supports us, as well as sustains our livelihood in our village. Fish is good. 01:13.666 --> 01:18.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% WILLEM MARX: Fishing helps feed his kids and if he ever trades or sells his catch, 01:18.100 --> 01:23.100 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% it helps fund their other needs too. But the bites don't come as often as they once did, 01:24.866 --> 01:28.833 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% perhaps due to a growing population or the changing climate. He's not sure. 01:30.800 --> 01:32.566 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% RODNEY KADOG (through translator): When I was younger, it was a lot faster. As soon 01:32.566 --> 01:36.700 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% as we cast our lines, we would bring in a lot of fish, compared to now, 01:36.700 --> 01:41.700 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% when fish are scarce. Today, it takes a long time for us to catch one fish. 01:44.000 --> 01:47.266 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% WILLEM MARX: Rodney often paddles out rapidly past the island's reef break, sometimes sitting 01:47.266 --> 01:52.233 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% for hours several miles offshore. But beyond the reach of a typical canoe ride farther out 01:54.300 --> 01:59.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% on this sea called the Bismarck sits a vast ship called MV Coco that villagers like Rodney 02:01.300 --> 02:05.466 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% worry could disturb the waters where local fish breed and damage their future fishing stocks. 02:07.633 --> 02:11.700 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Floating in place a mile above the seafloor, this vast vessel is testing a new technique for 02:13.766 --> 02:17.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% an often controversial industry called deep-sea mining. A giant device called the grabber scoops 02:21.000 --> 02:26.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% up several tons of rock from the seabed and sends it up to the ship's deck for analysis. 02:28.266 --> 02:32.833 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% Close to the mining site, the ship's crew show us these so-called chimneys of rock, crawling 02:35.166 --> 02:38.100 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% with mollusks and crabs with warmer water flowing from a vent that's visible on the ocean floor. 02:40.400 --> 02:44.700 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% But as the grabber leaves the water one evening, there's a major hitch. It hasn't fully closed. 02:46.966 --> 02:50.566 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% That means a large amount of material from the ocean floor has leached into the water column on 02:50.566 --> 02:55.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% its way up to the ship. Marine experts around the world insist any form of deep-sea mining 02:57.633 --> 03:01.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% will damage ocean life. But environmental scientists have been hired and brought on 03:04.166 --> 03:07.066 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% board to better understand whether this sort of damage can be minimized or possibly mitigated. 03:08.966 --> 03:11.733 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% As part of their monitoring, they lower tubes into the ocean to capture samples 03:11.733 --> 03:15.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% at different depths, then collate the resulting data to examine the impact 03:15.933 --> 03:20.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% on the waters around the site. A geologist from Papua New Guinea, 03:22.866 --> 03:25.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% meanwhile, photographs this haul, then gets to work assessing the concentration 03:25.800 --> 03:30.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% in these rocks of metals like copper, so crucial to the global energy transition. 03:32.866 --> 03:36.900 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The team on board are trying to confirm whether these metals can be mined efficiently, profitably 03:39.366 --> 03:42.400 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% and safely under the supervision of James Holt, an offshore manager for one of the companies involved 03:44.533 --> 03:49.533 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% in this effort. He says deep-sea mining could cause less harm than its onshore equivalent. 03:51.400 --> 03:53.566 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% JAMES HOLT, Offshore Manager, Magellan: I mean, I personally believe that, 03:53.566 --> 03:56.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% environmentally, this is a lot better. We're not relocating villages. We're not laying 03:58.400 --> 04:01.833 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% waste to huge areas of land. Because of the quality of the material here, 04:04.266 --> 04:08.066 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% we have to mine 300 percent less ground to get the same amount of copper that you would get on land. 04:10.500 --> 04:14.233 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% WILLEM MARX: But given the uncertain consequences of this deep-sea extraction, 04:14.233 --> 04:18.500 align:left position:30% line:77% size:60% it's an argument Jonathan Mesulam finds difficult to accept. 04:18.500 --> 04:23.500 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% JONATHAN MESULAM, Alliance of Solwara Warriors: Currently, there's no precedent case of sea mining 04:25.833 --> 04:29.033 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% around the world. Even scientists that I have talked to, the politicians, you and I, we don't 04:31.333 --> 04:36.266 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% really understand what is the likely impact is going to happen. So we don't want to take risks. 04:38.166 --> 04:40.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% WILLEM MARX: Mesulam left his job as a teacher to help set up a group focused 04:40.500 --> 04:45.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% on blocking seabed mining. He travels along the island's sometimes rugged 04:45.400 --> 04:49.833 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% local roads to provide communities here with information he says they need to make 04:49.833 --> 04:54.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% decisions to weigh the possible benefits of a new project against its potential drawbacks. 04:57.066 --> 05:02.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Most New Irelanders live in scattered coastal villages like Kono, around 700 05:04.300 --> 05:07.333 align:left position:10% line:71% size:80% residents with homes hunched on the shoreline at the foot of huge mountains. Alongside fishing, 05:09.666 --> 05:14.466 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% pig and crop farming, as well as other traditional activities, dominate daily life in the village. 05:16.500 --> 05:20.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% For as long as the oldest residents can remember, they have gathered beneath these 05:20.333 --> 05:25.333 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% ancient trees to debate and discuss the community's challenges. On a recent visit, 05:27.600 --> 05:32.600 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% 63-year-old village chief Chris Malagan opened the meeting. 05:34.633 --> 05:38.000 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% He was appointed to this role decades ago and appears to relish the responsibility. 05:39.900 --> 05:44.333 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% He eventually invited Mesulam up to address the weekly council. Patently, 05:46.166 --> 05:48.633 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% painstakingly, the campaigner explained what little he knew about the presence 05:48.633 --> 05:53.066 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% of a deep-sea mining vessel just over the horizon. 05:53.066 --> 05:58.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Then locals took their turn to speak on the subject, sometimes concerned, occasionally upset. 06:02.133 --> 06:07.133 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% For many residents, including Malagan, this poorly understood new industry seems to 06:09.066 --> 06:12.266 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% represent an existential threat at a time when fish stocks are already struggling. 06:12.266 --> 06:17.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% CHRIS MALAGAN, Chief, Kono Village (through translator): The ocean is our life. For us, 06:17.033 --> 06:21.333 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% the coastal people, it is our garden. We catch fish and share with others in 06:21.333 --> 06:25.133 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% the village without being paid. When we catch fish and sharks, 06:25.133 --> 06:29.633 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% we share with other families who need it to spread love and kindness. 06:29.633 --> 06:34.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% WILLEM MARX: Finding enough food can already be a challenge in communities like this, 06:34.400 --> 06:39.266 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% and after years without any significant support from the state, Malagan fails 06:39.266 --> 06:44.200 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% to believe an offshore mining project involving foreign companies might help. 06:44.200 --> 06:47.633 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% Do you think that the government of Papua New Guinea, the governor, 06:47.633 --> 06:50.400 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% the local representatives here on New Ireland, 06:50.400 --> 06:55.400 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% do you think they are on your side or on the side of the companies doing the prospecting? 06:57.333 --> 06:59.700 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% CHRIS MALAGAN (through translator): Well, they are on the side of the company 06:59.700 --> 07:04.700 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% and not working in our favor. As a result, we the people are suffering. 07:05.933 --> 07:07.800 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% WILLEM MARX: How does that make you feel? 07:07.800 --> 07:11.566 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% CHRIS MALAGAN (through translator): We are now faced with a huge problem. 07:11.566 --> 07:13.533 align:left position:10% line:89% size:80% WILLEM MARX: Are you angry? 07:13.533 --> 07:15.600 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% CHRIS MALAGAN (through translator): Yes. We will miss out on the benefits. 07:15.600 --> 07:19.800 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% The government and the national government will benefit from this. And we, the local, 07:19.800 --> 07:24.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% people, will have nothing, except schools and health clinics. But as for the people 07:24.500 --> 07:29.500 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% within the villages, there won't be other services. This is a big problem. 07:29.500 --> 07:34.500 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% WILLEM MARX: Meetings like this mean a great deal to Jonathan Mesulam. Until recently, he thought 07:36.600 --> 07:40.300 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% his decade of opposition had helped permanently stop seabed mining close to new Ireland. 07:40.300 --> 07:44.600 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% JONATHAN MESULAM: People are surprised, they're shocked after learning that the 07:44.600 --> 07:49.600 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% new company is coming back. Because all our efforts on campaigning against seabed mining, 07:50.833 --> 07:54.200 align:left position:20% line:83% size:70% we thought it was a dead issue now. But now we 07:54.200 --> 07:59.200 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% are back. We are awakened. We are now campaigning against this new company. 08:02.700 --> 08:06.266 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% WILLEM MARX: And amid conversations with villagers like Rodney and Chris, 08:06.266 --> 08:11.266 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% Mesulam says he feels betrayed by his own government, and the personal costs have been high. 08:13.566 --> 08:17.333 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% JONATHAN MESULAM: It's really stressful. You have a family to feed. You are taking a risky path. 08:19.533 --> 08:24.200 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% It's really emotional, because you are trying to commit yourself to a good cause. And it's -- 08:34.000 --> 08:39.000 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% to me, it's really emotional when discussing this issue. 08:46.466 --> 08:50.066 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% WILLEM MARX: He hopes to move forward on a legal case against the government to force 08:50.066 --> 08:53.933 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% more information about deep-sea mining into the public domain. 08:53.933 --> 08:57.933 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% JONATHAN MESULAM: We don't want to be used as guinea pigs for trial and error, 08:57.933 --> 09:01.833 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% because these metals that are going to be dug out of our ocean will not 09:01.833 --> 09:06.033 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% benefit anyone from here, because nobody here is using electric cars. So, you are 09:06.033 --> 09:11.033 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% taking minerals from the poor people, and you go and enjoy your luxury life. 09:13.066 --> 09:16.066 align:left position:10% line:77% size:80% But these people are going to be affected in a long-term destruction to the marine 09:17.833 --> 09:21.633 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% ecosystem. And that is something that we are very concerned about. 09:23.966 --> 09:28.366 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% WILLEM MARX: For locals like Rodney, global copper markets may operate far from their fishing waters, 09:30.200 --> 09:33.933 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% but community cohesion is something he wants to support. It could, he hopes, 09:35.333 --> 09:38.333 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% help combat this perceived threat to his livelihood. 09:38.333 --> 09:40.566 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% RODNEY KADOG (through translator): If we have a lot of conversations, 09:40.566 --> 09:45.266 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% raise a lot of awareness and have cooperation among our leaders in the communities to put up 09:46.800 --> 09:50.166 align:left position:10% line:83% size:80% a fight against this, then the seabed mining will not happen. 09:50.166 --> 09:55.066 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% WILLEM MARX: Not for the first time nor the last in our globalized world, a new industry 09:55.066 --> 10:00.066 align:left position:20% line:71% size:70% with cutting-edge technology is colliding with traditional techniques and an ancient way of life. 10:02.200 --> 10:07.200 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Willem Marx in Kono, New Ireland, Papua New Guinea. 10:09.033 --> 10:11.633 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% AMNA NAWAZ: Tomorrow, we will delve into the seeming lack of government 10:11.633 --> 10:16.633 align:left position:20% line:77% size:70% oversight of deep-sea mining and the forces behind that avoidance.