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From left: Impossible Mining’s deep-sea mining robot;
the Impossible research team working in the lab
BetterEV label, she says, could eventually become
as recognizable as “organic” and “fair trade” are for
food and consumer goods. It is, she admits, a mam-
moth undertaking. But given enough consumer
pressure, mining companies might be encouraged
to try. “There are thousands of innovations waiting
in the wings. We just need a push,” says Grogan.
GROGAN’S OWN STARTUP is developing marine
robots that would hover above the ocean fl oor
to pluck individual metal nodules from the sea-
bed, rather than vacuuming them up along with
biodiversity- rich sediment as other mining com-
panies do. The AI- equipped robots can be pro-
grammed to recognize sea life, like sponges or
worms living on individual nodules, and leave them
in place. Impossible Mining is also scaling up new
technologies in metal refi ning that use specially
engineered bacteria to break down nodules into
their component elements without using energy-
intensive heat or harmful acids that leave toxic
waste. Prototypes for both technologies are being
deployed on a trial basis, and Grogan expects both
to be in full operation by next year. “If we are the
fi rst company that shows those standards can be
met, then the others have no choice but to follow.
They will compete, they will innovate, and then the
industry as a whole is doing better for the planet.”
A consumer-facing standards label would add
welcome pressure on mining companies to do bet-
ter, says Andrew Friedman, the project lead on sea-
bed mining at the Pew Charitable Trust’s campaign
for ocean conservation. But voluntary label accred-
itation is not a substitute for strong regulation.
“Even if a segment of the consumer base is engaged
with thinking about their supply chain, it’s ulti-
mately the regulatory standards which will have
the most infl uence on industry behavior,” he says.
The Metals Company, a Canada-based startup,
argues that a public-facing label is unnecessary
because the ISA is already in the process of estab-
lishing an undersea mining code that includes ro-
bust environmental, reporting, and oversight re-
quirements. But Grogan says it was in fact a subpar
application to the ISA from the Metals Company
and its partner country Nauru, for a permit to test
its polymetallic- nodule collector system, that trig-
gered her idea. The environmental impact state-
ment, she says, was disingenuous and incomplete, a
sentiment shared widely among scientists, conser-
vationists, and other national governments. Fried-
man says Nauru’s initial assessment “included vir-
tually no biological baseline data. An environmental
impact statement that doesn’t describe the marine
life in the environment is not an environmental im-
pact statement.” After several ISA parties raised
concerns, Nauru submitted a revised statement
with some biological data, but did not allow for fur-
ther comments from stakeholders. “I was so angry
that a mining company could be so disrespectful of
the approach to assessing environmental impact,”
says Grogan. “That’s when I realized that market
forces—consumer sentiment—might actually be
the stronger voice, if we could get the message out.”
In a male-dominated industry, Grogan is used
to being the only woman in the boardroom and not
having her voice heard. She can’t count the number
of times she’s been asked to go fetch tea or coff ee, or
been directed to the back of the room, even though
she is co-founder of a mining company. “I literally
have to fi ght for a seat at the table,” she says. But
she relishes the battle. “When the dino saurs say it
can’t be done, I can’t help but smile. In three years’
time, I will remind them that they didn’t want to
be part of this change. It’s exhausting and it’s ex-
cruciating, but... this is my chance to change the
industry that I grew up in.”
RENEE GROGAN
Co-founder and chief
sustainability offi cer,
Impossible Mining
COURTESY IMPOSSIBLE MINING (2); GROGAN: TORI PACKER
