What is the risk of discovering thousands of unknown viruses in the deep ocean / mining?

Researchers have reached an unknown world of viruses in an area rich in vital metals for batteries; A world that is now threatened by the expansion of underwater mining.

Researchers have identified nearly 12,000 types of viruses in the depths of the Pacific Ocean, more than 99% of which have been unknown to science. These viruses live in an area that is the target of seabed mining companies due to its rich deposits of metals. Scientists warn that industrial extraction of these metals could disrupt the delicate ecosystem of the deep ocean and harm its unknown viral communities. This research was published in the journal "Nature Communications" on 22 Mehr 1405. This study was conducted in the Clarion-Clipperton area in the Pacific Ocean. An area between Mexico and Hawaii that is at a maximum depth of 6,000 meters and millions of metal masses the size of potatoes are scattered in its bed. The region is one of the world's largest areas for deep-sea mineral exploration, and its metal deposits, including cobalt, nickel and manganese, are important for the production of electric vehicle batteries. By examining more than 60 seabed sediment samples, researchers based in China identified 11,742 types of viruses, 11,662 of which were completely new and unknown. The genetic comparison also showed that only about 4% of the protein clusters of these viruses correspond to the information available in the global databases.

Contrary to what their name might suggest, these viruses pose almost no threat to human health, and most of them infect bacteria. However, they play an important role in maintaining the biological balance of the deep sea; They help in the cycle of essential substances such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur by regulating the population of microbes and breaking down organic matter. Some of these viruses also help microbes to resist high concentrations of toxic metals by transferring genes. For this reason, these viral communities are an important part of the complex network of life on the seabed; A dark and nutrient-poor environment that scientists still do not fully understand. Scientists warn that the activity of mining machinery on the seabed can disrupt these biological networks. The upwelling of large volumes of sediment may kill the bacteria that host these viruses and stop essential nutrient cycles; An event that will have wider consequences for the ocean ecosystem.

So far, the International Seabed Organization has issued 17 exploration permits in the Clarion-Clipperton region, five of which are in China's hands. As the global demand for metals used in batteries increases, the possibility of commercial mining also increases. The researchers say that it is important to identify these viruses before the start of mining operations, because the new findings can be the basis for assessing the environmental effects of future activities.